USAID Supports Development of National HIV/AIDS Strategy
As part of its World HIV/AIDS Day activities, Timor-Leste held its first National HIV/AIDS Congress on Dec. 5-6. Supported by USAID partner Family Health International (FHI) and other partners, the congress is part of the development of the country's new National Strategic Plan to respond to HIV/AIDS. FHI played a central role in the overall design of the congress and the multi-sectoral consultative process, facilitated district-level consultations, and led sector-specific workshops during the congress. The new strategic plan will be launched during the second National Congress in February 2006. (Dec. 13, 2005)

Civic Education Joins High School Curriculum
Timor-Leste's Education Ministry has begun training teachers from 180 high schools around the country in its new civic education curriculum. Copies of the new textbook and the accompanying teacher's manual, together with the teacher training, are being funded by USAID/TL. The curriculum features a range of civic education topics, including lessons on democracy, human rights, and the legal system for secondary school students in the three-year-old country. (Dec. 13, 2005)

New Village Council Members Learn Their Roles
USAID/TL partner, the National Democratic Institute (NDI), is supporting the government's National Public Administration Institute to develop a series of training modules for members of the country's newly elected village councils. Some of the course components had their first real-world test recently in Maliana District. After incorporating feedback from that pilot, the modules will form the core training course for council members from all 442 villages in Timor-Leste, elected in the country's first local poll since independence in 2002. (Dec. 13, 2005)

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