Horticulture in Timor Leste

One of the great things about working and volunteering in Timor Leste is the amazing people you meet as well as really inspiring places. One such person is Mr Simao Barreto, Director of CNEFP a modern and innovative vocational training centre in Tibar on the outskirts of Dili.

Tibar Panorama 20130127 lores

I have had the pleasure of working with Simao and the Teachers and staff at CNEFP for several years now and I was fortunate enough to interview Simao during my last visit to Tibar about the school and the growth of the Horticulture courses being offered at Tibar. You can find the podcast at

 http://www.wwmn.net/2013/02/horticulture-in-east-timor/

Here are a collection of images from the developing gardens

timorleaves lores

You don’t see leaves like this in many gardens!

tibar panorama 4 lores Tibar Panorama 2 lores Tibar Panorama 1 lores Tibar DSCN0986 Tibar DSCN0985 Tibar DSCN0984 Tibar DSCN0978 Tibar DSCN0971 Tibar DSCN0965 Tibar Panorama 5 lores

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3 thoughts on “Horticulture in Timor Leste

  1. Yeah! my brother Sim is a great man! he has critical thinking of development of many sector in Timor Leste.

  2. Thank you Mick. I am in Sydney, Oz, and volunteer in a TL support group, Willoughby Friends of Ossu ( ie Ossu Subdistrict in Viqueque). Where are you now? Were you working in horticulture? That is one of my interests. Simao Barreto and CNEFP look really interesting. What other fields do they cover?
    Ollie Howes
    WFOO in Australia

    • Ollie,
      I’ve just returned from Timor and I am back in Melbourne. My background is engineering and training with a focus on renewable energy but I do have an interest in permaculture.

      The interview provides a good overview of the role of CNEFP and the training facility.

      Cheers
      MOC