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Government
offices in Timor-Leste have a new way to tackle communications
problems in a country with four official and working languages.
The Ministry of Planning and Finance now manages and maintains
a set of simultaneous translation equipment at its National Directorate
of Planning and External Assistance Coordination (NDPEAC).
The specialized equipment is in high demand
in Timor-Leste, where meeting participants might speak any of four
languages: Tetum, Portuguese, Indonesian, and English. At many
workshops and conferences, it is often only possible for speakers
and listeners to communicate effectively through simultaneous
translation. The NDPEAC equipment allows one language to be translated
into the other three by using microphones and headphones that
can accommodate up to 40 participants and 165 listeners.
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Before the NDPEAC equipment
arrived, there were only two sets in the Timor-Leste: one was at
the Parliament, where it was often in use; and the other was rented
out by a veterans' organization at a high daily rate.
The Ministry took full advantage of its new equipment in August
at a high-level workshop exploring ways to involve civil society
organizations in development planning. The participants--donor
representatives, national and international NGOs, youth and women's
organizations, and church representatives--spoke in all four languages.
"It is a great benefit, not just to this directorate and
the Ministry of Planning and Finance, but to the whole government
of Timor-Leste," said Gastao de Sousa, director of NDPEAC.
"One of its most important benefits is that it allows Timor-Lesteese to be involved directly in discussions at meetings with
international participants."
The Directorate's equipment was used for the first time at the
government's Development Partners Meeting in May. Soon afterward,
the police and the Ministry of Justice also used the equipment
at meetings they organized. In July, the Directorate lent the
equipment to the government's Commission for Reception, Truth,
and Reconciliation (CAVR) for its meeting on forced migration
and famine. The meeting took the form of a public hearing, and
the audience heard from many witnesses using different languages.
Among the speakers was Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr. Jose Ramos-Horta,
Timor-Leste's minister of foreign affairs and cooperation. The
NDPEAC equipment is already booked for the next Development Partners
Meeting in December.
USAID provided the translation equipment, its installation, and
maintenance through an in-kind grant of $112,000. Simultaneous
translations facilitate the government's work, provide more complete
and clearer information about its activities, and encourage increased
citizen participation.
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