Timor-Leste is literally a young nation - with 71.6% of its population being under the age of 35, according to 2021 census. 21.6% are youth (15 - 24 years), which is about 289,000 persons. This number may look small and uninteresting. However, given the opportunities and challenges, geography and development deficits, this is not as it seem to be. Education sector has a lot to catch up in this fledgling country, where the priorities have been put on economic indicators over the social indicators. If anything is to be learned from India, it is the states (mostly the southern states) that invested in the social sector (education and health mainly, with also focus on nutrition), have outperformed the states that invested mostly in economic development Ref: South or North: India's Better Performing Region? | The Great Indian Divide | Barkha Dutt (youtube.com). This should send out a message to Timor-Leste on the importance of investing in social sector development. It is true that economic development is important, and it is visible in the growing infrastructure. However, it cannot develop people and can develop quality of life only to an extent. Investing in education, especially girl child education, freeing up higher education, enabling quality health care services, and providing adequate nutrition to the young and vulnerable, will not be able to show the impact in a year or two, but will be highly visible in 10 years down the line.
Poland is a case in point, which also has about 30,000 children joining the youth age group annually. Poland was a Communist country that was inflicted with poverty. After the fall of communism, the country invested in education. It spends about 5% of its GDP on Education, with 27% on primary, and the rest shared between secondary and tertiary. The result was in about 15 years, Poland became a knowledge and skills hub. More companies moved in. Today, it's economic growth rate far outweighs several other European countries, and it continues to overtake some of the "developed" European countries. It is education first for Timor-Leste.
High poverty, lower education, ever igniting fights between the Martial Arts Groups, numerous political parties, very limited decentralization of political and economic powers beyond Dili - all these may function as a concoction for damaging the power of the youth. Their time is now. Investment in Education, Health and Nutrition - the key social sectors must start today, now. The youth bulge can be a blessing for the aging Southeast Asian countries, provided, Timor-Leste invests in its youth for tomorrow.
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