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Secretary of State for Arts and Culture Jorge Suárez Cristovao and his ministerial team, as well as representatives of UNESCO Jakarta and Timor-Leste, discussed the future application of Timor-Leste for World Heritage status. Moe Chiba, UNESCO representative for Timor-Leste, and Rizky Fardhyan, UNESCO representative for Jakarta, attended the meeting via videoconference. 
The meeting brought together representatives from various ministries and government departments to share experiences and discuss technical issues, including the Ministry of Tourism and Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry, the National Forest Secretariat and the State Forestry Administration.
The Secretary of State explained that “our country has ratified three UNESCO conventions: in 2003, 2005 and 1972”, adding that “at this moment, we are stepping up our efforts, especially within the context of the 1972 Convention”, stressing its importance for Timor-Leste given its objective of encouraging the protection of cultural and natural assets of great importance to humanity.
Jorge Soares Cristovão also mentioned that the State Secretariat “is working with all the ministerial departments to finalize and register our list of possible nominations for World Heritage”.
Sites being assessed for possible inclusion in the World Heritage list include important cultural heritage sites such as the Tutuala Archaeological Site, Jaco Island, Mount Lamilao and Traditional Houses (Umarisan).
“During this meeting, we shared experiences on how to identify and select sites that could be included in the provisional list,” the Secretary of State said. He also stressed that “this is not just a question for tourism, but also requires archaeologists and historians to help us identify and register these heritage sites at UNESCO in Paris”.
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