Until recently, Ana Florinda da Costa, 25, from the remote village of Buibau in Baucau, was among Timor-Leste’s unemployed youth. Ana Florinda, however, has always set herself apart with her persistence and determination to get out of this rut.

The fifth in a brood of 12, she stayed with the Salesian Sisters in Venilale so she could continue on to higher education. This is how she was able to study Food Preparation for three years at Escola Tecnica Professional (ETP) Santa Maria Mazarello--a tourism and hospitality secondary school run by the Salesian Sisters.

After graduating in 2004, she returned to her village, unemployed. Not long after that, she decided to go to Dili for job-hunting. Unable to find a job, she decided to spend her time taking computer lessons with the Salesian Sisters in Dili. When she still was not able to find a job after this, she attended the Portuguese language course at the Ministry of Education’s vocational training center. Before she could set out as a jobseeker armed with new language skills, however, the crisis broke out in 2006 and she fled to Baucau.

It was not until October 2007 that things started turning for the better. Ana Florinda recounted: “I heard a radio announcement about USAID’s internship program in hospitality and tourism. With some of my friends, I then came to Dili to join this program. One week later, I was informed that I had been accepted to work as an intern for Discovery Inn. What made it very challenging was that the manager told us from the beginning that interns who have performed well will be hired after the training program.”

Ana Florinda will never forget her first day as an intern. The service industry can be a tough environment, especially for people without working experience. Ana Florinda knew, however, that this was the golden opportunity she had been looking for.

“I liked the internship program very much. For six months, we were given special treatment—we received good training and started earning some money as well. Towards the end of the internship period, I was offered a permanent job by Discovery Inn. I am proud to work in the kitchen preparing food for our guests, who are Timor-Leste’s and the United Nations’ top leaders. I will keep this job and try to build a culinary career,” said Ana Florinda.

She is now able to help send her younger siblings to school in their village, and has this to say about the program: “I hope USAID or other organizations will continue and expand this program and give many other young Timorese the same chance that I had.”

Of the 26 hospitality industry interns participating in the USAID pilot internship program, 22 have been offered a job by the host companies--most of them have accepted the job offer while a few opted to pursue further studies. The participating Dili-based hotels and restaurants received certificates from the Ministry of Tourism and USAID recognizing their participation and contributions to the program. As part of this program, USAID also provided training and equipment to two schools--Maria Mazzarello in Venilale and Centro Treino Integral e Desenvolvimento in Baucau—and Centro Formacao Joao Paulo II to help upgrade the facilities and quality of education at each institution.