(Press Release) Implementation of Training for Timor-Leste’s Digital Governance Capacity Development

JICA Malaysia Office in collaboration with the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Japan-Malaysia Technical Institute (JMTi), located in Penang, Malaysia will host a specially customized Third-Country Training Program (*1) entitled “Digital Governance Capacity Development” for Timor-Leste will be held from 21 October to 3 November 2026. The purpose of the program is to provide essential knowledge and hands-on skills to identify and mitigate cyber risks through realistic and real-world scenarios.

As Timor-Leste prepares for accession in October 2025, the urgency to modernize digital governance has intensified. ASEAN membership will require Timor-Leste to comply with regional digital, cybersecurity, and data governance frameworks. This includes the adoption of technical standards, robust digital infrastructure, and capable human resources. ASEAN integration is not only a diplomatic milestone but a pathway to regional digital economy participation, shared security and inclusive growth.

To address these challenges and catered to capacity building of skilled professionals, this Third-Country Training Program will be conducted by JMTi (*2) to provide essential knowledge and practical skills to protect important data systems, and digital interactions. In this course, the participants will learn how to achieve tangible improvements across their operational and strategic functions and enhanced skills in key ICT domains to implement and improve pilot systems and ICT services and ensure sustainability in establishing internal training frameworks.

JMTi will host twelve (12) trainees from Timor Leste to acquire knowledge on how to strengthen cybersecurity readiness and adoption of best practices and documentation of technical frameworks aligned with ISO and ASEAN standards.

*1 “Third-Country Training Program (TCTP)”: A type of technical cooperation in which JICA provides financial and technical support for training programs in which one developing country hosts trainees from another developing country. The main objective of TCTP is to share the experiences of Japan and Malaysia in specific fields and to strengthen the trainees’ ability to address various challenges in their home countries. In this region, the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been implementing the Malaysia Technical Cooperation Program (MTCP) since 1980, and since 1992, the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and JICA have been jointly conducting TCTPs.

*2 JMTi was established with technical collaboration between Malaysia and Japan government. The objective is to produce competent and knowledgeable manpower by providing skill training at higher level in advanced technology in line with current technology demands for industrial sector. This institute offered training program at Diploma Technology of Engineering and Advanced Diploma Technology of Engineering.

The overview of this training program is as follows.

1. Program Overview

1) Program Name
“Digital Governance Capacity Development”

2) Training Organizer : JMTi, Malaysia

3) Training Dates : October 21 – November 02, 2026

4) Training Venue : JMTi Penang

5) Target Country : Timor-Leste

6) Training Content
This training program is organized by JMTi, the training provider, to share the experiences and best practices of Malaysia and Japan related to digital governance:

(i) Methodology & OSINT: Ethical hacking foundations and information gathering.

(ii) Network & Vulnerability Assessment: Scanning, enumeration, and risk identification.

(iii) Web & System Exploitation: Testing web applications and executing network attacks.

(iv) Advanced Infrastructure Attacks: Active Directory security and privilege escalation.

(v) Capstone & Reporting: Real-world simulation and communicating risks effectively.

2. Related Events

Closing Ceremony: Date: November 02, 2026

Venue: JMTi Auditorium, Penang

3. Contact Information

　JICA Malaysia Office
　
　Tel (Main): +603-2166-8900

　Contact Person: Ms. Esther Cheng (Program Manager)

　E-mail: JuneCheng.MS ▲jica.go.jp (Convert ▲ to @)