CookingTimor-Leste

Foreword
I am honoured to accept the opportunity to
write the Foreword for this book, Cooking fish
and seafood in Timor-Leste: recipes and stories
of traditions and livelihoods.
Since we achieved Independence almost 20
years ago, Timor-Leste has been striving to
alleviate poverty and reduce its unacceptably
high rates of malnutrition, particularly
among women and children. These are
complex problems, requiring ongoing
efforts across multiple sectors, including:
agriculture and fisheries to increase local
food production; infrastructure development
to facilitate distribution and improve
sanitation; improved health care to treat and
prevent diseases; and education about the
importance of eating a nutritious diet.
The natural resources of Timor-Leste have
the potential to help improve health and
nutrition, and to provide household incomes.
In the fisheries sector, improvements to
fisheries production and distribution, and
increased awareness about the benefits of
eating fish, can improve the everyday lives of
households in coastal areas and the health
of people across the nation. Recent efforts
in this area include testing new fishing
techniques, experimenting with new fishbased
products and the expansion of fish
farming through programs of the Government
of Timor-Leste and its development partners.
This recipe book forms part of the efforts
mentioned above. It reminds and teaches
us how to use our local products and the
cooking traditions of our ancestors – foods
and traditions that have nutritional value,
historical origins firmly rooted in Timor-Leste,
and live on from generation to generation.
The recipes in this book use mainly local
ingredients and cooking methods that are
easy to follow. They provide a useful guide
for families and households, as well as
restaurants and students.
As a proud Timorese, I hope that my fellow
Timorese will appreciate and use this recipe
book, so that together we can improve health
and nutrition in Timor-Leste, starting with our
own families.
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