Timor-Leste is a young nation struggling to feed its people. With an underdeveloped agricultural sector, together with other difficult realities such as drought, locust infestations and lack of livelihood opportunities, many Timorese go through their daily lives with less food than they need. IDPs are particularly vulnerable to this food insecurity.

Food insecurity
As of end of March 2008, an estimated 30 % of IDPs of a total of 100.000 are living in approx. 58 camps, mainly in the cities of Dili (51 camps) and Baucau (7 camps).
Many of the IDP families who live in the camps are food insecure. They have no employment and rely only on the government’s gradually diminishing food rations.

In order to improve the situation, NRC, in cooperation with the local NGO Fitun Fo Dalan, has supported the establishment of a market garden in one of the camps. 

IDPs working on their plot in the market garden    at the Quarantina traditional shelter site.    Photo: Norwegian Refugee Council/    Julian da Cruz

Growing staple foods
Together, NRC and Fitun Fo Dalan mobilized 26 IDP families in the Quarantina traditional shelter site to establish a market garden on the rounds of the site. The market garden was established in January and covers an area of approximately 75x30 meters and is divided into 77 plots. Each family has been assigned two 1.2 m x 8 m plots which they plant and harvest as they choose. The most common crops grown are kankun (a green leafy vegetable), cabbage and green beans - all staples in the daily Timorese diet.

NRC Country Director Alfredo Zamudio, says all the families have worked really hard on cultivating their plot of land. In April they could finally harvest their first crop.

”So far, the results have been very good, says Zamudio. “The first crop that was harvested in April gave enough produce to provide both food for the families and food to sell in the local markets,” he says.

Generating income
The IDPs in Quarantina are also very satisfied with the market garden.

“I am so happy because the garden has raised my income, says Jorge Freitas.
One plot of kankun can produce two harvests per month, and one plot’s worth of kankun sold at the local markets earns approximately six dollars. For Freitas and the other IDPs this is a substantial addition to the household income, considering the average income in Timor-Leste is US $370 a year.

Some of the families in Quarantina have chosen to keep all their crops for food, while others have chosen to sell all their crops. Others again have done a little bit of both. In total, the families earned approximately 140 US$ from the first market garden harvest.

NRC has been active in Timor-Leste since 2006. NRC currently manages five transitional shelter sites in Dili, through its Camp Management program. In total, the sites house more than 2500 IDPs. NRC also runs shelter and education programs in Timor-Leste.