Timor-Leste is a young island nation endowed with exceptional terrestrial and marine biodiversity, including globally significant forests, coral reefs, mangroves, and freshwater ecosystems. These ecosystems underpin national food security, livelihoods, cultural identity, and climate resilience. However, biodiversity is increasingly threatened by land-use change, unsustainable harvesting, invasive species, pollution, and the accelerating impacts of climate change. Recognizing these challenges, the Government of Timor-Leste has updated its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) for 2026–2030 to serve as the country’s primary framework for conserving biodiversity and integrating ecosystem management into national development.

The updated NBSAP builds on the lessons of the 2011–2020 NBSAP and is fully aligned with the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), the Paris Agreement, the National Adaptation Plan (NAP), Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) commitments, and regional initiatives such as the Coral Triangle Initiative. Developed through an extensive consultation process, including national workshops in Dili and sub-national consultations in Baucau, Manufahi, and Liquiça, as well as bilateral meetings with ministries, NGOs, development partners, and community representatives, the NBSAP reflects a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.

The vision of the updated NBSAP is “By 2030, Timor-Leste’s biodiversity and ecosystems are conserved and sustainably used by all sectors, providing food security and contributing to poverty eradication and improved quality of life for all Timorese People.”  To achieve this, the NBSAP positions biodiversity as a foundation for sustainable development, emphasizing integration across agriculture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture, tourism, and spatial planning.

The Strategy defines 22 interlinked national targets, adapted from the 23 KMGBF Targets, covering ecosystem restoration, protected areas, species conservation, genetic diversity, sustainable management of productive sectors, invasive species control, pollution reduction, climate adaptation, biosafety, and resource mobilization. These are operationalized through a detailed action plan that identifies responsible institutions, timelines, and links to national policies. The NBSAP also provides spatially explicit priorities across municipalities, based on the National Spatial Plan, identifying where agricultural diversification, forestry restoration, sustainable fisheries, community-based tourism, and protected area expansion should occur.

Cross-cutting strategies strengthen the inclusive and rights-based implementation of biodiversity actions. Timor-Leste’s National Action Plan on Gender-Based Violence (2017-2021) and the National Strategy for Social Protection (2021) provide complementary frameworks for embedding GEDSI in conservation. GEDSI embedded in the NBSAP is guided by the Maubisse Declaration (2022) and aligned with the four key priorities of the Secretary of State for Equality (SEI). A Gender Plan of Action outlines measures to support women’s leadership, reduce gender barriers, and integrate gender-responsive indicators. A dedicated section on Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLC) or local community (used in this document) participation ensures rights-based engagement, recognition of traditional knowledge systems such as tara bandu, and equitable distribution of benefits. Capacity-building measures target sectoral ministries and departments, as well as communities and the general public.

The NBSAP also includes a country-specific Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Framework that identifies headline, component, and complementary indicators. The framework outlines baseline values, target milestones, and responsible monitoring agencies, ensuring transparent and accountable progress reporting toward 2030 commitments.

Financial planning involves a multi-layered approach encompassing domestic budgeting, fiscal and regulatory incentives, donor engagement, private-sector investment, and community-based financing. Resource leveraging will be done through appropriate complementarity with different plans and policies, including those related to climate change and sustainable development. These strategies aim to close current financing gaps and ensure the long-term sustainability of biodiversity initiatives.

The updated NBSAP thus provides Timor-Leste with a comprehensive and actionable roadmap to address biodiversity loss, strengthen climate resilience, and enhance the well-being of its people. It reinforces Timor-Leste’s commitment to the Convention on Biological Diversity and positions the country to meet global environmental goals while advancing inclusive and sustainable national development.