The Secretary of State for the Council of
Ministers and
Official Spokesperson for the Government
of Timor-Leste
Díli, May 7, 2012
Ten-year anniversary and more than ten
billion in Petroleum Fund marks new milestone for Gusmão Government’s good
governance structures in management of Petroleum Sector
As the Gusmão Government ends its first mandate
and the nation celebrates the ten-year anniversary of the restoration of
independence, Timor-Leste is in its best position ever for continued sustained
development with US $10.54 billion in the Petroleum Fund as of the end
of April 2012.
While research tells us it takes 20-40 years for
basic government statebuilding transformations in post conflict nations,
Timor-Leste has been lauded for defying this statistic by fast tracking the
establishment of best practice institutions, systems and mechanisms to manage
the petroleum sector.
The Gusmão Government has increased revenues from
oil and gas through wise diversification investment strategies and comprehensive
tax audits on resource companies, and the sector continues to be effectively
managed by an active independent regulator, the National Petroleum Authority
(ANP). The independent operation of the ANP, without interference, is critically
important to separate any future politicization of resource management
conforming to international best practice.
Despite being criticized for expansionary fiscal
and social policies, the results of the Petroleum Fund prove that the Gusmão
Government has been fiscally responsible while using the fund responsibly to
accelerate economic and social development. Poverty has been substantially
reduced, last recorded at a 9% decrease, core infrastructure like electricity
has been built and communities have been included in statebuilding though
innovative consultative development funding. The Gusmão Government has been
praised for the extent of its formal safety net programs, unique among
low-income countries, with around 13% of the non-oil GDP devoted to public
transfers in 2010.
The result of the Petroleum Fund performance
proves that the Gusmão Government has managed petroleum wealth through new good
governance institutions and with world’s best practice mechanisms.
Secretary of State Ágio Pereira noted, “The
performance of the Petroleum Fund is an outstanding result which should give the
People of Timor-Leste confidence that their resource wealth is being managed
wisely and budget spending is being prudently balanced. The entire Civil Service
across Ministries and institutions involved in the Petroleum Sector should be
congratulated for this result and we applaud them for their dedication and
commitment to safeguard the resources and wealth of the nation.”
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