The Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF), the State Secretary for Environment, the State Secretary for Land and Property and FAO have launched a project aiming strengthening national capacity to address the negative impacts of ‘slash and burn’ and uncontrolled forest fires. The event was held on September 8, 2020 at MAF conference room in Dili. Participants included 20 government institutions, civil society organizations, universities, as well as donors, agriculture projects and NGOs that have formed an inclusive project steering committee.

A preliminary analysis conducted in 2019 by FAO showed that as much as 44% of the national territory was affected by fire in 2017. The fire season normally starts in June and ends in December. Most fire incidence occurs between October and November as farmers are burning their land in preparation of the main cropping season. These practices are part of the itinerant ‘slash and burn’ agriculture system that is widely practiced in Timor-Leste.

The Minister of Agriculture, H.E. Mr. Pedro dos Reis highlighted that despite the negative impact of fire on the environment and agriculture, there is limited awareness of the issue. H.E. the Minister invited institutions member of the steering committee, particularly line Ministries and agencies, to actively participate in field events and field work organised by the study team. He said that ‘this will ensure ownership of the study and long-term commitment to address the negative impacts of fire by all key stakeholders’. He extended his appreciation to FAO for responding positively to the Ministry request for support to conduct a fire study.

The State Secretary for Environment, Mr. Demétrio do Amaral de Carvalho informed that various studies found that ‘slash and burn’ and the resulting forest fires are the main contributors to land and environmental degradation, deforestation and forest degradation, loss of biodiversity, soil erosion & slope instability, water regime degradation and climate change. He said that ‘the magnitude of fire events that affects the country’s landscape calls for Government attention to address the issue’.

The State Secretary for Land and Property, Mr. Mario Ximenes said that ‘because of the impact of fire on land degradation, the issue of fire is very important for the State Secretary of Land and Property’. He assured his availability and willingness to actively collaborate with the study team and thanked the MAF and FAO for initiating this important study.

Representing FAO, Mr. Raphy Favre underlined that addressing the negative impact of fire requires a better understanding of the practice of burning, the extend and historical trends of fire events, the reasons why rural population are burning every year, the customary norms that regulates the practice as well as the legal and policy framework. With better understanding of the above, MAF and FAO will design and test the implementation of an alternative landscape management system in which fire is no longer necessary for the land to still deliver in a sustainable manner all what the rural population need for their living. He said that ‘the launching of the fire’ study is timely as fire incidence are increasing everywhere in Timor-Leste at this time of the year’. Mr. Favre thanked H.E. the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Mr. Pedro dos Reis, for the trust placed in FAO and requesting technical assistance on this important subject.

The project will conduct a study to measure the extend of fire with 20+ years historical perspective through analysis of high-resolution satellite imageries and to identify the key drivers of fire incidence as well as the circumstances in which fire takes place through field data collection. The study will help to reinforce the national capacity to address the negative impacts of fire in Timor-Leste and provide an information base to inform policies and actions. The lessons learned of the pilot landscape management at community level will also provide useful evidences to identify solutions that work