Speaking with IN Diplomacy Editor-in-Chief Ms Nomita Dhar, Timor-Leste’s Ambassador to Singapore, H.E. Alexander Tilman, discussed the growing Timor-Leste–Singapore partnership following Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s historic official visit, highlighting cooperation in ASEAN integration, education, healthcare, investment, tourism, and trade.
Timor-Leste’s Ambassador to Singapore, H.E. Alexander Tilman, reaffirmed the strength and growing trajectory of bilateral relations between Timor-Leste and Singapore following the historic official visit of Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to Timor-Leste. In an exclusive interview with IN Diplomacy Editor-in-Chief Ms Nomita Dhar, Ambassador Tilman described the visit as “a historic moment in our bilateral relations,” marking the first official visit to Timor-Leste by a sitting Singapore Prime Minister and opening a new chapter in cooperation between the two countries.
The interview took place following Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s inaugural official visit to Timor-Leste, during which the Ambassador was part of the official delegation. The discussion reflected on more than two decades of diplomatic engagement since the establishment of formal relations in 2002 and explored opportunities for expanding collaboration across diplomacy, economic development, education, healthcare, ASEAN integration, investment, tourism, and trade.
Ambassador Tilman noted that bilateral ties had steadily strengthened through a series of high-level exchanges in recent years. These included the official visit of Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan to Timor-Leste in 2023, President José Ramos-Horta’s State Visit to Singapore, Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão’s official visit to Singapore in 2025, and most recently, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s official visit to Timor-Leste.
According to the Ambassador, the Prime Minister’s visit represented the culmination of more than 25 years of friendship built on shared principles of democracy, peace, respect for international law, open trade, and multilateral cooperation.
“This visit by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong is the culmination of over 25 years of relationship,” Ambassador Tilman said. “Going forward, we will move into a different type of relationship.”
The Ambassador highlighted Singapore’s longstanding support for Timor-Leste’s ASEAN accession process, both before and after the country’s admission into the regional bloc.
He explained that more than 1,300 Timorese public officials had received professional training under the Singapore Cooperation Programme, while Singapore’s Enhanced Singapore–Timor-Leste ASEAN Support (STAR) Package continued to strengthen the country’s institutional readiness for ASEAN membership.
The programme includes leadership development, technical training, scholarships, and specialised preparation for Timor-Leste’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2029.
“Singapore continues its support with what they call the Enhanced STAR Package. It is support specifically aimed towards our ASEAN membership,” he said.
The Ambassador also welcomed Singapore’s recent decision to include Timor-Leste as a source country for foreign workers, describing it as another milestone that would strengthen people-to-people connectivity and broaden economic opportunities for Timorese citizens.
Ambassador Tilman identified education and healthcare as central pillars of Timor-Leste’s national development agenda.
He noted that since independence, the country had expanded its healthcare workforce from approximately a dozen doctors to more than 1,500 through international cooperation, particularly with Cuba. Timor-Leste now has two medical schools alongside engineering, agriculture, and civil engineering faculties.
While significant progress had been achieved, he said continued academic partnerships would be essential to strengthen specialist training, scientific research, and institutional capacity.
“Health and education continue to be one of our main priorities. We continue to invest in them,” he said.
The Ambassador further revealed that discussions were underway between Timor-Leste’s Ministry of Health and Singapore’s National University Health System (NUHS) to establish closer institutional collaboration. He said Singapore’s expertise in tropical medicine and infectious disease research could contribute to Timor-Leste’s efforts to address challenges such as tuberculosis and dengue fever.
Turning to economic cooperation, Ambassador Tilman said Singapore had become one of Timor-Leste’s most visible investment partners.
Among the flagship projects is the Timor Marina Square development in Dili, alongside Singaporean investments in agriculture, fisheries, insurance, financial services, hospitality, and gaming-related industries.
He explained that Timor-Leste continued to promote foreign direct investment through business-friendly policies, allowing limited liability companies for low-risk investments to be established in as little as three days.
For investments exceeding US$500,000, investors may qualify for special investment agreements that provide incentives including tax concessions, tax holidays, and access to land depending on the project’s strategic importance.
The Ambassador identified tourism, agriculture and fisheries, infrastructure, and oil and gas as priority sectors for investment.
Discussing tourism, Ambassador Tilman described Timor-Leste as a destination that remained largely untouched by mass tourism, with pristine beaches, rich marine biodiversity, and strong community hospitality.
He noted that while tourism infrastructure remained at an early stage of development, the country’s natural environment offered considerable potential for sustainable tourism.
“We are probably like Bali or Phuket 50 years ago, before mass tourism,” he said.
The Ambassador added that Timorese hospitality remained one of the country’s greatest assets, with visitors welcomed by local communities across the country.
Source: IN Diplomacy Reporters.
On trade, he acknowledged that Timor-Leste currently imports the majority of its goods while coffee remains its principal non-oil export. He said there was growing interest in expanding exports of agricultural products, ornamental fish, and other locally produced goods to Singapore and international markets.
He also noted that two distributors currently import Timor-Leste coffee into Singapore, while ornamental fish exports represented another emerging area of bilateral trade.
Reflecting on Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s visit, Ambassador Tilman said the enthusiastic public reception demonstrated the longstanding friendship between the peoples of Timor-Leste and Singapore.
He noted that the relationship extended beyond official diplomacy, recalling longstanding historical links between the two countries and Singapore’s role as a longstanding trading partner for generations of Timorese families.
“Our friendship with Singapore is genuine,” he said. “It is a friendship because our relationship with Singapore goes back generations.”
Looking ahead, Ambassador Tilman expressed confidence that the momentum generated by the Prime Minister’s visit would translate into deeper cooperation across diplomacy, education, healthcare, investment, tourism, trade, and regional affairs. He also welcomed continued engagement between governments, businesses, academic institutions, and communities as both countries worked to strengthen their comprehensive bilateral partnership and advance regional cooperation within ASEAN.
Source: IN Diplomacy Reporters.
