Timor-Leste is one of UNESCO's youngest Member States, having joined the Organization in 2003. UNESCO's cooperation with Timor-Leste, which in fact started long before it joined the Organization, is undertaken through the UNESCO Office in Jakarta.
The Science and Technology Education Project’s implementation in Timor-Leste marks a successful collaboration with UNESCO.
The project contributes to the efforts to rehabilitate and reconstruct Timor-Leste’s education system, adopting an innovative approach to encourage science and technology education, through a “hands on” approach adapted to the local context. The National University of Timor-Leste applies the new teaching approach by encouraging students to act as mentors to younger students elsewhere in the country. Such initiatives are expected to lead to the establishment of an interactive science and technology center.