Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste — Government Palace, Dili
— —
Indicators
MKAE Leads Meeting on the Revision of the Zero Plastic Law
Featured National

MKAE Leads Meeting on the Revision of the Zero Plastic Law

The Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs (MKAE), represented by General Coordinator Mr. Jorge Rui de Carvalho Martins, chaired a meeting with relevant stakeholders to review Decree-Law No. 37/2020 on Zero Plastic. The meeting took place in the conference room of the Cabinet …

Read more
MCAE Receives Visit from Tsuneishi Company
Latest National

MCAE Receives Visit from Tsuneishi Company

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs (MCAE), through General Coordinator, Mr. Jorge Martins, received a visit from the Tsuneishi Shipbuilding Company to discuss an investment proposal for ship construction in Manatuto, with a …

Read more
01Economy

Timor-Leste Economic Dashboard

Key macroeconomic indicators, updated from official sources (INETL, BCTL, Ministry of Finance).

View full data

Non-oil GDP growth

Real year-on-year growth, percent. 2025 and 2026 are estimates.

Structure of the non-oil economy

Sector contribution to GDP, percent.

Main trading partners

Imports by origin, percent.

Economic timeline

02Map

GIS Economic Potential by Municipality

Choose a map style, click a municipality to see its economic profile, select an infrastructure site and get directions from where you are now.

  1. Click a municipality on the map
  2. Select an infrastructure site
  3. Get directions from your location
LowHigh

Map: Mapbox · Routing: MGAD-TL. Municipal boundaries simplified for display. Population data based on the 2022 Census; the municipal economic layer is illustrative — to be replaced with official data from INETL, BCTL and the Ministry of Finance.

03Information

Information Centre

News, press releases, announcements, tenders, competitions, job vacancies and events in one place. Filter by publication type or by topic.

Full archive

Found 0 results of this type . Clear all filters

No information matches this filter. Try another type, or view all information.
04Affairs

Economic Affairs

MCAE's main areas of coordination.

ASEAN
05ASEAN

Timor-Leste in ASEAN

The 11th member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. MCAE coordinates national participation in the economic pillar (AEC) and integration into the regional market.

26 Oct 2025Full ASEAN membership
14 yearsProcess from 2011 to 2025

Timor-Leste signed the Declaration on its Admission into ASEAN at the opening ceremony of the 47th ASEAN Summit and deposited its Instruments of Accession to the ASEAN Charter and to the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone Treaty (SEANWFZ). It is ASEAN's first enlargement since Cambodia joined in 1999.

Full membership opens access to a market of more than 680 million people, to ASEAN free trade agreements (ATIGA, RCEP), cooperation funds and capacity-building programmes. At the same time, the Government must implement the legal and economic obligations set out in the ASEAN Roadmap.

ASEAN's three pillars

  • APSC — Political-Security Community — dialogue, peace and regional stability.
  • AEC — Economic Community — single market, free trade, investment, connectivity. Coordinated by MCAE.
  • ASCC — Socio-Cultural Community — education, health, environment and ASEAN identity.

See also: ASEAN Economic Community

Path to accession

Key stages of Timor-Leste's ASEAN accession process.

  1. ASEAN applicationTimor-Leste submits its formal ASEAN membership application.
  2. Accepted in principle, observer status40th and 41st Summits, Phnom Penh.
  3. Roadmap to full membershipCriteria: accession to legal instruments and participation in all three pillars.
  4. 46th SummitLeaders agree to admit Timor-Leste in October; a Special Task Force begins work.
  5. Full ASEAN membership11th member; Admission Declaration signed 26 October 2025, Kuala Lumpur.
  6. Economic integrationImplementing ATIGA, harmonising customs and taking part in the AEC and the ASEAN Community Vision 2045.
WTO
06WTO

Timor-Leste in the World Trade Organization

The WTO's 166th member. MCAE leads the accession negotiations, the implementation of commitments and coordination with line ministries.

30 Aug 2024WTO accession
8 yearsProcess from 2016 to 2024

The Accession Protocol was signed on 26 February 2024 at the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi by the Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, and WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Negotiations took seven and a half years — one of the fastest accessions in WTO history.

WTO membership guarantees market access, predictable trade rules and dispute settlement mechanisms, and is a strategic step towards ASEAN membership.

Timor-Leste's commitments

  • Tariffs on goods — Tariffs bound for all products; phased reductions for non-agricultural products. (Implementing)
  • Information technology — Participation in the Information Technology Agreement (ITA and ITA Expansion); zero tariffs on many products by 2030. (Phased)
  • Services — Telecommunications, finance and tourism opened up; restrictions remain on oil and mining support services. (Implementing)
  • Fisheries subsidies — Formal acceptance of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. (Accepted 2024)
  • Government procurement (GPA) — Inter-ministerial negotiating team set up by Government Resolution No. 24/2026; accession negotiations under way. (Negotiating)

See also: GPA press release

Path to accession

Key stages of Timor-Leste's WTO accession process.

  1. WTO Accession Working PartyAccession request and establishment of the Working Party (2015–2016).
  2. NegotiationsSeven Working Party meetings; bilateral agreements with the EU, Indonesia, the US and others.
  3. Accession Protocol signedMC13 Abu Dhabi; ministers approve the terms of membership.
  4. WTO accession166th member; protocol signed at MC13 in Abu Dhabi, in force 30 August 2024.
  5. Post-accession workshopMaximising WTO benefits and synergies with ASEAN integration, Dili.
  6. GPA negotiations under wayInter-ministerial negotiating team created by Government Resolution No. 24/2026 for the WTO Government Procurement Agreement.
07Agenda

Agenda and Legislation

MCAE Agenda

Scheduled meetings, forums and official events.

    Legislation

    Laws, decree-laws, resolutions and ministerial diplomas.

    • No legal instruments have been published on the portal yet.
    08Agencies

    Supervised Institutions

    Public institutions under the oversight of MCAE.

    View all