Dili, 22 May 2026 (Media Democracia) – As part of the celebration of the 24th Anniversary of the Restoration of Timor-Leste’s Independence, the Centro Nacional Chega (CNC) held an activity with the theme “Literacy Festival” with the aim of promoting and strengthening literacy through educational activities that spark people’s interest in reading. The activity ran for three days at the CNC Hall in Balide.
According to the Executive Director of the Centro Nacional Chega (CNC), Hugo Maria Fernandes, the festival is held every year combining book discussions, writing your own books, culinary activities, and music performances by bands.
“The main objective is to give young people the role of getting to know the national history more deeply, the Division of Education and Training, which has worked for many years in informal education together with the Ministry of Education (ME), also participated, through the launch of Higher Education. Up to now we have reached 50% of training for them in Dili. Last year, the establishment of a new at UNTL was approved.” said CNC Executive Director Hugo Fernandes, (21/05/26).
This year the department hasn’t yet received new students, but will start receiving them next year. The Ministry of Education has already provided training for 100 teachers to establish new teaching methods and strengthen teaching methods.
At the same place, the II Vice Prime Minister, Coordinating Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Rural Development and Community Housing, Mariano Assanami Sabino, asked all citizens, especially youth, to create a reading culture as the basis for forming character, identity, and innovative thinking to face new challenges, including when Timor-Leste enters ASEAN.
“How can we still think about past history, but be more productive. How can we use reading well, because Timor-Leste is now entering a new process that requires a lot of learning, even though the past situation may no longer be relevant to today’s problems, historical experience can be the basis for learning and solving new problems. I ask you all to keep reading our history because it is very important, sometimes now with TikTok and everything that’s so easy, with big internet, we sometimes forget to read, but reading is the foundation to shape our struggle in the mind.” said II VPM Mariano Assanami.
He emphasized that the liberation of the homeland cannot end just with independence. The liberation of the people requires effort to improve the economy, so that everyone has money and is happy with life. But people must seek money, not just wait to receive it, and need a mentality and innovative thinking capacity.
The representative of the Universidade da Paz (UNPAZ), Faculty of Law student Andrade Viegas, said that as students they must read a lot so that it can become the basis for Timorese identity, culture, and character.
“Keep reading Timor’s history and you must know our culture, sometimes now with TikTok and big internet we forget to read, but reading is the foundation to shape our struggle in the mind. For the nation to move forward, it needs reading and research.” he said.
Meanwhile the Literacy Festival is a space to reconnect the new generation with the history of the struggle, to strengthen character and prepare capacity to face new challenges when Timor-Leste joins ASEAN.
Reporting: Trainees Juliana and Leozalia
Photo: Trainee Leozalia