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Countries and Regions Country Assistance Plans Document
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Country Assistance Plans - India : I. Country Performance Assessment
B. Poverty Assessment8. Even before the 1999 destruction and displacement, East Timor was one of the poorest areas in southeast Asia, with severe problems of illiteracy, malnutrition, malaria, and tuberculosis. GDP per capita in 1997 was estimated at under $395, and approximately 50 percent of households were clustered around the poverty line. This situation worsened dramatically following the popular consultation and the GDP in 1999 is estimated to have fallen by 40-45 percent as a result of the mass destruction of infrastructure. In 1998, about 90 percent of the population lived in rural areas, and agriculture was the primary source of income for 71 percent of the population. Further, the destruction and closure of all banks and public services in September 1999 left no mechanism for payment of salaries for goods and services by public or private entities, and depositors lost access to savings held in the banking system. 9. The United Nations (UN) mounted a large-scale emergency humanitarian relief effort in September 1999, including assistance for the voluntary repatriation of refugees. A consolidated inter-agency appeal totaling $199 million was launched on 27 October 1999, to address urgent humanitarian needs for food, shelter, water and sanitation, health, and education. Some 550,000 people were estimated to require general rations, and most towns, dwellings, shops and local government structures had been either partially or totally destroyed. Prior to the upheaval, less than half the population had access to safe water and sanitation facilities. With the substantial damage to infrastructure and public utilities that resulted from the post-consultation violence, already degraded services ceased to function. Similarly, virtually all health facilities were heavily damaged and ceased to function, and few doctors, specialists or health administrators remained in East Timor. 10. Pressing needs exist in all sectors to arrest and reduce poverty. Food security and agricultural development, focused particularly on reactivating the family sector and smallholder agriculture through seed provision for the 2000 planting season, are of critical importance. At the same time, efforts toward longer-term agricultural revitalization, through seed multiplication, irrigation, and livestock re-stocking, are commencing in 2000. Income generating activities, job creation opportunities, small business development, and microcredit programs are also being established. In the health and education sectors, priority is being given to restoring primary health care services, rebuilding and re-equipping schools and hospitals, and recruitment and training of personnel. 11. In October 1999 the Joint Assessment Mission (JAM) identified the need to collect economic and social data to support effective economic policy making. Although the population displacement and infrastructure and asset destruction that followed the 1999 popular consultation have seriously undermined East Timor’s prospects for medium-term improvements in living standards, little progress has been made to establish and staff a research and census office within UNTAET. In addition, the departure of non-East Timorese officials has left a skills gap in East Timor that is widely acknowledged, but yet to be fully documented. There is therefore a pressing need to prepare an update on social and economic conditions in East Timor, to assess current production and dissemination of social and economic data, and to identify prioritized actions needed in order to permit the production and dissemination of appropriately comprehensive, reliable and timely data beyond the transition period. This identification of prioritized actions would provide the foundation for designing subsequent programs for statistical development. ADB initiated preparation of an update in 2000, including preparation of a poverty profile, assessment of the medium-term outlook, and recommendations on appropriate institutional and staff training arrangements. ___________________
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