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RAEBIA Timor-Leste is a local NGO working to support strong rural communities in Timor-Leste. 

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Founded in 1997 as the field office of USC Canada's Seeds of Survival Program, RAEBIA Timor-Leste became an independent, Timorese organisation in 2013. USC Canada remains one of our valued partners, alongside others including JICA, UN FAO, GIZ, US AID and the Government of Timor Leste's Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. 

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We work alongside communities in rural and remote areas of Timor-Leste to promote food and livelihood security and to ensure sustainable natural resource management. We apply and promote principles of conservation agriculture, agro-biodiversity and agro-ecology.

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RAEBIA is both a name and an acronym. In English, it spells out "resilient agriculture and economy through biodiversity in action." in Kmak, a local lanuage in Timor-Leste, it combines the words rae, meaning land, and bia, meaning water: the two things you need to grow something. 

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Our vision

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Resilient rural communities in Timor-Leste.

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Our mission

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Using principles of conservation agriculture, agro-biodiversity and community-led development to strengthen the economic, environmental and social resilience of rural communities. 

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Our strategic objectives

      

 

+ Conserve and enhance agricultural biodiversity

 

+ Promote sustainable farming practices in order to achieve food security

 

+ Assist smallholder farmers in their efforts to combat desertification and land degradation

 

+ Implement mitigation and adaption processes to combat the impact of climate change

 

+ Strengthen the incomes of farming families and therefore also provide for  the economic growth needed for vibrant rural communities

 

+ Assist women to take their rightful place as strategic actors in the building of sustainable and healthy food production systems

 

+ Support the inclusion and maintenance of young farmers in conservation agriculture