Poland seeks to strengthen Timor-Leste Business Relations, makes grant to Venilale Vocational Training College A delegation from Poland’s Embassy to Indonesia, headed by the First Counsellor of the Trade and Investment Section, Romuald Morawski, visited Timor-Leste last week for talks on strengthening business relations between the two countries. The group, which also included Defence Attaché Colonel Bogdan Ciezki, Consul and Political Officer Maciej Duszynski and intern Arek Kostusiak, was hosted by Sakib Awan, the Honorary Consul-General of Poland in Timor-Leste. Addressing guests at a reception and dinner at the Discovery Inn in Dili, Morawski said that the Trade and Investment Section organised annual meetings with the Timor-Leste Government and members of the business community to maintain and foster good relations, especially in trade and investment. The theme of this year’s meetings was “Poland’s Participation in the Timor-Leste Strategic Development Plan 2011-2030, through Trade and Investment”. “Trade volume between Poland and Timor-Leste is growing significantly, from US$ 350,000 in 2010 to US$2.000.000 in 2012. This number, although very encouraging, still does not reflect the full potential of trade between the two economies. Even with the big distance that separates us, there are still many more sectors in which cooperation can be established. Our hope is that after this meeting, more business contacts will be made and continue to develop in the coming years”. Morawski cited several sectors where cooperation could be developed, from agriculture to manufacturing, green technology, shipbuilding, mining, oil and gas, as well as construction and electronics. “Due to our vast experience, we can offer expert and cost-efficient cooperation in building the infrastructure investments needed in order to realise Timor-Leste’s potential, such roads, electricity and power, broadband internet and radio telecommunication, seaports and airports, as well as water treatment and waste management”, Morawski said, pointing out that there was already a company from Poland operating in the country, working at the Hera power plant project as a subcontractor to the Finnish company Wartsila. “Along with trade and investment in these sectors, lots of job creation and transfer of technology should occur,” he stated, “In exchange, Poland can import coffee and tropical fruits, among other goods. In the services sector, Poland has expert experience in the training of nurses, as well as business product outsourcing, one of the fastest-growing businesses in today’s Poland. Poland can also offer partnerships in developing the education sector, such as universities and schools”. Sakib Awan said that since he had accepted the role of Poland’s Honorary Consul General to Timor-Leste, he had seen both countries’ economies strengthen and grow, as relations between them became closer and more productive. “Over the past two decades, Poland’s economy has grown at a record pace compared to its neighbours and it is the only European Union economy to avoid recession since the global financial crisis hit in 2008. In the last 10 years, Poland’s development twice exceeded the EU average. The outlook is one of strength and stability”, Awan said, “Products from Poland are prominent in world markets. The country has become a hub for the automotive, aviation, shipbuilding and manufacturing industries, exporting its goods and know-how to the four corners of the globe. It is to Poland that Air North sends its new Embraer 78 for annual maintenance and servicing… some iconic Holden automobiles are fitted with an engine made in Poland and Poland makes competitively-priced, world-class construction equipment. The delegation‘s annual meetings in Timor-Leste are scheduled to enable them to attend the Proclamation of Independence celebrations and this year they travelled to Kraras, Viqueque to take part in the event. En route to Viqueque, the group paid a visit to the Escola Tecnico Professional Santa Maria Mazzarello, a vocational training college run by the Salesian Sisters, where they presented the school with fifteen brand-new computers with high-speed internet. Poland’s Consul and Political Officer Maciej Duszynski and Timor-Leste’s Minister and Deputy Minister of Education took part in a ceremony to launch the first-ever Development Small Grant Programme in support of the Venilale school. In his remarks, Duszynski said that the equipment would significantly improve conditions of learning and open up new opportunities for the local youth, adding: “Owing to the generosity of Poland’s Honorary Consul-General in Timor-Leste, Mr Sakib Awan, the school, alongside the orphanage, will also receive a car, which was desperately needed,” he said, “and in launching the first Small Aid Grant from the Government of Poland, this is not only a historic moment but also proof that small help can make a big difference”. Duszynski said that the total value of the grants was more than US$25,000 and that they would be organised in future on a yearly basis, calling the Venilale project “a good beginning”. Timor-Leste’s Deputy Education Minister Avelino Marcal Ximenes thanked the Government of Poland for its generous support, saying, that he hoped the cooperation between the two countries would continue in the years to come: “We have a common history of fighting for freedom and struggling for independence, as well as religious and cultural links and the previous bilateral high profile visits; solid ground for future cooperation,” he said. Education Minister Bendito Freitas said that the Ministry was happy and grateful and hoped that there would be more cooperation in terms of training for Timorese students, professors and civil servants in Poland, emphasising the importance of visits by two great Poles to Timor-Leste: Pope John Paul II and Lech Walesa. The following photos are available: 1. Mr. Maciej Duszynski, Consul and Political Officer at the Embassy of Poland (far right) with Timor-Leste’s Vice Minister of Higher Education, Marcal Avelino Ximenes and the Salesian Sisters at the Escola Tecnico Professional Santa Maria Mazzarello in Venilale 2. Honorary Consul-General of Poland in Timor-Leste, Sakib Awan, Defence Attaché Colonel Bogdan Ciezki, Timor-Leste Foreign Minister/Vice Prime Minister Jose Luis Guterres and First Counsellor of the Trade and Investment Section, Romuald Morawski 3. Mr. Arek Kostusiak, intern at the Embassy of Poland, Colonel Bogdan Ciezki, Defence Attaché, Embassy of Poland, Mr. Sakib Awan Hon. Consul-General of Poland in Timor Leste, Mr. Romuald Morawski First Counsellor, Trade and Investment Section and Mr. Maciej Duszynski, Consul and Political Officer at the Embassy of Poland.
Posted on: Wed, 04 Dec 2013 17:32:55 +0000