Díli, Sept. 18, 2025 (Lusa) – Infraestruturas de Portugal, the country's road and rail infrastructure manager, and the Ministry of Public Works of Timor-Leste have signed a cooperation protocol to support the modernisation of the road network in Timor-Leste, the Portuguese public company announced.

"The agreement establishes a collaboration focused on strengthening the Timorese road sector, namely through the creation of a technical and legal framework for road network management, the development of best maintenance practices and the training of local technicians," according to a statement released on Wednesday.

In the statement, Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP) explains that, in the first phase, a team will support the definition of a new technical and legal framework to "ensure greater road safety, promote more effective land use planning and ensure efficient infrastructure management".

"This action is part of a broader strategy by Infraestruturas de Portugal to strengthen Portuguese-speaking cooperation in the infrastructure sector. IP is currently developing cooperation programmes in four Portuguese-speaking African countries and in Timor-Leste," the statement added.

Last October, Portugal and Timor-Leste signed a new Strategic Cooperation Programme (PEC) between the two countries for the period 2024-2028 with an indicative budget of €75 million.

The PEC has five priority areas, namely Human Development, Rule of Law and Good Governance, Public Administration, Public Finance and Economy, Youth and Employment, and Oceans Sustainability and Infrastructure, particularly road infrastructure.

MSE/AYLS // AYLS

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