Gusmão Turns Vision into Action, Establishing Opi-Op Foundation for Timor-Leste’s Youth

Image : President Opi-Op Foundation Carlos Gusmão and Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão in Austrália, 02/08/2026.

SAPNewsTL, Australia: Timorese worker Carlos Gusmão, who works as a Disability Support Worker in Gove District, Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory, Australia, has decided to establish the Opi-Op Foundation Timor-Leste to support Timorese people through professional training that is relevant to labour-market needs and contributes to the country’s development process.

The Opi-Op Foundation Timor-Leste was established with a vision of achieving a Timor-Leste society that is professional, competitive, innovative, civilised, healthy, critical, just, and committed to the common happiness and well-being of its citizens. Its mission includes:

• Promoting and empowering Timorese young people so they can actively participate in and directly contribute to the national development process.
• Creating appropriate spaces and opportunities for young Timorese people through training centres, discussions, seminars, workshops, and other academic activities aimed at developing their knowledge, skills, and capabilities.
• Encouraging ideas, initiatives, and positive actions that can drive development across all sectors in Timor-Leste.

The Opi-Op Foundation serves as a learning and development space for young people, bringing them together to exchange ideas, share perspectives, develop initiatives, and take action for national development. The foundation seeks to transform and strengthen the mindset of young Timorese people by promoting critical thinking, education, professional skills, civic values, competitiveness, and democratic participation.

The President of the Opi-Op Foundation, Carlos Gusmão, said that the training centre was established to assist Timorese people by providing high-quality training that responds to labour-market demands, enabling participants to actively contribute to national development and helping the centre become a hub for skills development.

“The training programmes will be based on labour-market needs. We will offer courses, discussions, seminars, workshops, and other academic activities designed to develop and strengthen the skills of Timorese people in English, Portuguese, Spanish, English for Children, pharmacy, public health, accounting, and journalism.”

The foundation will also explore opportunities to provide appropriate training for young people in areas such as engineering, artificial intelligence, information technology, and administration.

Carlos explained that the main motivation behind establishing the foundation, together with his colleagues, was the high number of young people classified as Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) in Timor-Leste. According to the figures cited by the foundation, the number has reached 105,882 young people. Many young people of working age remain unemployed and have limited access to higher education and professional training. Carlos believes that this situation creates a shared responsibility for Timorese citizens, including the government, to create more opportunities and spaces for young people.

“The NEET figures indicate a national challenge that requires appropriate opportunities and spaces for young people. This is our responsibility to contribute, even in a small way, and it motivates us to take action by providing opportunities for young people to develop themselves and prepare for the labour market, both within Timor-Leste and across the diaspora,” he emphasised.

According to data from the 2022 Population and Housing Census, Timor-Leste had a total population of 1,340,125 people. Of this population, 105,882 young people aged 15–24 were not engaged in employment, education, or vocational training. Among those aged 15–24, the proportion of males participating in employment, education, or vocational training was 29.1%, while the corresponding figure for females was 29.6%.

Meanwhile, the Vice President of the Opi-Op Foundation, Sergio da Costa, confirmed that the foundation has now established a permanent secretariat in Dili and has begun rehabilitating the building that will be used as its training centre. Registration for the training programmes is expected to open soon.

“We have now established a permanent secretariat in Dili and rehabilitated the building that will be used for the courses. Therefore, in the near future, we will open registration for the courses for which we have already prepared the training calendar.”

Sergio encouraged young people who have had limited access to education, training, and professional development opportunities to visit the centre and improve their knowledge and professional skills through the courses offered by the Opi-Op Foundation.

“I encourage young people who have not yet had the opportunity to access training to come to our training centre once we announce the registration schedule,” he said.

The training centre is located within the Bidau Santada Village Headquarters compound, providing a safe, comfortable, and quiet learning environment. Young people who have not yet had access to training, particularly in the areas mentioned above, will be able to register and participate in the courses once registration opens.

The training programme will initially consist of seven main areas: English, Portuguese, Spanish, pharmacy, public health, accounting, and journalism. The foundation also plans to offer programmes in engineering, information technology, and administration.

Each training programme will run for three months and will include seminars and other learning activities, with sessions held three times a week.