An Alternative Development Model for Timor-Leste
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SPECIAL ADMINISTRATI VE REGION OF OÉ- CUSSE AMBENO AN ALTERNATIVE DEVEL OPMENT MODEL FOR TIMOR -LESTE PICTURE 1 NITIBE SCHOOL BEING REHABILITATED. PHOTO ANNE KENNEDY UNDP TIMOR-LESTE JULY 2017 U N D P CONTENTS Message from the President of the Special Administrative Region of Oé-Cusse ................................................ 4 Foreword ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Disclaimer ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Chapter 1: Introduction........................................................................................................................................... 7 Purpose of the Report ............................................................................................................................................................... 7 Preparation Processes .............................................................................................................................................................. 8 Approaching Human Development in the Context of Special Economic Zones ................................................. 8 Chapter 2: Establishment of Special Social Market Economy Zones in Timor-Leste ..................... 16 Background to Timor-Leste’s Special Zones of Social Market Economy ........................................................... 16 RAEOA ZEESM TL’s Approach and Vision ..................................................................................................................... 18 Early Developments in RAEOA ZEESM TL from 2014 to 2017 .............................................................................. 20 Public Investment to Date and Early Priorities ........................................................................................................... 29 Chapter 3: Demographic Trends and Human Development Challenges in Oé-Cusse ................... 33 Population .................................................................................................................................................................................. 33 Education ................................................................................................................................................................................... 38 Health .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 42 Economy ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 47 Chapter 4: Moving Forward and Next Steps for Oé-Cusse ....................................................................... 53 Pathways for Translating Priorities into Next Steps ................................................................................................ 54 TABLES Table 1 Examples of ASEAN SEZ Experiences ........................................................................................... 12 Table 2 Government Budget Approved for ZEESM TL from 2014 to 2017 (US$) ...................... 29 Table 3 Budget Allocated for ZEESM as a Percentage of Total Government Expenditure ...... 29 Table 4 Distribution of ZEESM TL Budgets from 2015 to 2017 ......................................................... 30 Table 5 Annual Population Growth Rate of Countries in the Region ............................................... 33 Table 6 Population of Oé-Cusse in the National Context ....................................................................... 33 Table 7 Sub-municipality Population Distribution .................................................................................. 34 Table 8 Population Age Distribution in Timor-Leste and Oé-Cusse 2015 ..................................... 35 Table 9 Dependency Ratios of Select Countries and Regions ............................................................. 35 Table 10 Illiteracy Rates in Timor-Leste and Oé-Cusse ......................................................................... 40 2 Table 11 Enrolment Rates in Oé-Cusse and Timor-Leste, 2015 ........................................................ 41 Table 12 Schooling Status for the Population Aged above Three, Timor-Leste and Oé-Cusse, 2015 ............................................................................................................................................................................ 42 Table 13 Schooling Status for the Population aged Three and above for Sub-municipalities of Oé-Cusse .................................................................................................................................................................... 42 Table 14 Birth Delivery Attended by Skilled Health Personnel, 2013 through 2015 ............... 44 Table 15 Comparison of Percentage Changes in Stunted, Underweight and Wasted Children ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 44 Table 16 Health Care Personnel per 1000 Inhabitants .......................................................................... 46 Table 17 Percent Employed, Unemployed and Economically Inactive among Working People Aged 15–64 .............................................................................................................................................................. 47 Table 18 Employment Sectors for People Aged above 10 Years of Age, Timor-Leste and Oé- Cusse, 2015 .............................................................................................................................................................. 48 Table 19 Percentage of Households that Have Access to Improved Living Standards in Oé- Cusse and Timor-Leste, 2015 ........................................................................................................................... 52 FIGURES Figure 1 Dimensions of Human Development .............................................................................................. 9 Figure 2 Human Development Index (HDI) ................................................................................................ 10 Figure 3 Potential Impacts that can be Led by Favourable Demographic Changes ................... 37 Figure 4 Economically Active Populations, Timor-Leste and Oé-Cusse, 2015 ............................. 47 BOXES Box 1 Areas where the RAEOA ZEESM TL has competencies to enact Policies, Regulations and Executive Orders .................................................................................................................................................... 18 Box 2 ZEESM TL Special Zone of Market Economy Law No. 3/2014, Article 5, Section 2....... 19 Box 3 Success Stories: Powering Timor-Leste ........................................................................................... 25 Box 4 Success Stories: Heart and Head ......................................................................................................... 27 Box 5 Success Stories: Investing in Themselves ...................................................................................... 50 Box 6 Multi-Dimensional Poverty Index ...................................................................................................... 51 3 MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION OF OÉ-CUSSE Since the beginning, the idea of establishing Special Zones of Social Market Economy (ZEESM) was to seek an alternative development model. Oé-Cusse is a unique geographic location with little to no state presence and because of that, we believe that here we can work to co-create, with the people and central level government, more accountable governance. One that takes into account governability and the diversity witnessed in Oé-Cusse’s subsistence economy and in its diverse practices which have laid the foundation for the high levels of social cohesion and sense of place. We are aware of how often states have a myopic view of development. That they tend see things from the perspective of conforming citizens’ behaviors, practices, and plots of land, to better administer and tax/profit from them. Governing goes beyond administering. I hope to build a model that focuses on economic empowerment of people living under extreme poverty and engaging in subsistence economy, a model that takes the best that there is in such an economy to build the foundations of a more, call it moral economy. For me, looking back at my personal journey from administering to governing and my involvement in state- building, Social Market Economy means rethinking the role of the state in the provision of services and of the necessary safety nets to lower the risk and create the enabling conditions to aid the transition (if so desired) of peoples from a subsistence based economy to a more social economy where markets are tools to foster collaboration and specialization. In Oé-Cusse