Research on Key Issues for Economic Development in Timor-Leste

1.Governance for Development
The Timor-Leste Governance for Development Transition Program (GfD) is the continuation of an eight year program that is funded by the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) to provide multi-sector advice to Timor-Leste government agencies and organisations to improve evidence-based decision making and service delivery to citizens.
2.Objectives of the Grant Activity
The key objectives of the grant partnership are to
•implement a program to produce academically sound economic research focussed on Timor-Leste relevant to areas of DFAT’s interest, that informs development policy and practice;
•deepen the knowledge base and strengthen capacity on key economic development issues in Timor-Leste;
•build networks that support institutions working in Timor-Leste to strengthen economic development across sectors; and
•raise the profile of economic research on key development priorities in Timor-Leste, and the use of robust evidence to inform policy and decision-making.
(Note: Brett has advised that this is a continuation/renewal of ongoing work, hence only informal discussions and no formal proposal submitted, other than the draft agreement. Refer to previous agreement under pure ID# 117387461 which was entered as a contract research. This renewal is actually an outputs-based grant)

In terms of budgets, Brett has advised that the consultant rate is fixed by DFAT (non-negotiable) and they only allow around 10% overheads as indicated in the draft agreement. We have updated the costing model accordingly and any gap will be covered under in-kind contribution.