Timor, especially its capital city Dili, was severely affected by twenty five years of Indonesian occupation and by the crimes perpetrated by the pro-Indonesian militia in the country after the announcement of the results of the referendum on self-determination in 1999. Several thousands of housings had then been destroyed.
East Timor, a freshly independent republic since 2002, had to face new political and social troubles in 2006, internal this time. The number of housings partly or entirely destroyed in the capital city during these confrontations is estimated at more than two thousands.
The Bamboo Project was born from the acknowledgement of the total technological dependence of Timor on its close or further neighbours: in Dili no building material is produced locally. Everything is imported from Indonesia, Australia, China… This situation is stressed by the fact that almost all the building companies are managed by foreign contractors who obtain the whole of procurement contracts.
Besides, it follows our first experience carried out in East Timor in 2005-2006: a test workshop had been organized to rally young professionals, bamboo producers and government organizations around the realization of a community facility. The positive impact of this first experience enabled us to implement this new one year programme in 2007. It is thus upstream of all the building projects, by focusing on the creation of a new production line of composite materials intended for the building industry, and by valuing local resources, mainly bamboo. Several phases succeeded one another (feasibility survey, agronomic study, market survey) preparing the launching of a pilot production unit. Besides, we have mobilized Indian partners (Ipirti) to ensure the technical training of young Timorese professionals with whom we had already worked during the 2005 project. The totality of the machines was already present on the island, installed by UNIDO in 2005 in the framework of a project which fell through.
Post scriptum
In May 2008, the Bamboo Project has been transferred within the Timorese Ministry of Economy and Development, and the team trained by A&D currently carries on the project in a state organism, Centru Bambu Timor Leste, supported by UNIDO once more. The aim in the end is to take part in the reconstruction in Dili and its surroundings, while participating to the restarting of the country’s economy.
under construction
