Evaluating the opportunities for smallholder livestock keepers in Timor-Leste

This project aimed to further develop a vision and direction for ACIAR to support sustainable development of the smallholder livestock sector in Timor-Leste over the next 5-10 years.

Livestock are kept by the majority (87.2%) of households in Timor-Leste.  Pigs are kept by a total of around 146,000 households with a national herd estimated at almost 420,000. There is a good case for analyzing interventions around smallholder pig production that could have potentially positive impacts on livelihoods. These include support to improve sow/piglet nutrition and management utilising locally available feedstuffs. There is a relatively strong demand for piglets for households to raise for their own ceremonial purposes or for sale to other households for ceremonial purposes. The scale and sustainability of this demand for piglets will be what determines the business case for any project supporting improved sow and piglet nutrition and management for smallholders.

The governments of Timor-Leste and Indonesia are committed to greater cross-border cooperation and increased trade, which supports the Timor-Leste Strategic Development Plan and the aspiration of the country to achieve membership of ASEAN. Asian Development Bank (ADB) is also prioritizing support for the two countries to develop collaboration in the form of trade, investment, and cooperative production as a means of addressing national inequality, diversifying economic growth, and importantly, reducing poverty in the border areas between the two countries.