Timor-Leste, a Southeast Asian country with a growing population of 1.3 million, faces frequent droughts, flooding, landslides, and earthquakes. With 42% living below the national poverty line and 70% in multidimensional poverty, climate change is causing more frequent, severe, and unpredictable events, negatively impacting the population, economy, and sustainable development efforts.
| Fragility/Conflict status: | Institutional and social fragility |
| Programme type: | Accelerated Support Window |
| Funding: | $249,165 |
| Duration: | 12 months |
| Status: | Ongoing |
Steps taken in the right direction for championing the ambition of EW4All
The Timor-Leste National Adaptation Plan 2021 focuses on improving early warning systems to mitigate climate hazards and disaster risks. Resources are being mobilized to strengthen observation, monitoring, and forecasting capabilities. The Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF) supports upper air monitoring equipment. Community preparedness is being enhanced, and the National Framework for Climate Service Strategic Plan (2023-2028) sets priorities for early warning systems.
Timor-Leste’s 2023 mid-term review of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) highlights weaknesses in risk knowledge, including a lack of systematic collection of disaster-related statistics, neglect of vulnerable populations, and inadequate monitoring of early warning systems. Historical disaster statistics are crucial for targeting warning messages, resource allocation, and understanding traditional disaster-impacted areas, improving impact-based forecasting and broader disaster risk reduction. The proposed action contributes to the ambition of Early Warnings for All (EW4ALL) initiative championed by the UN Secretary General.
