Women’s economic empowerment is closely tied to the well-being of families and communities. It provides financial independence while also strengthening social resilience, preserving biodiversity and fostering aspirations for enhanced opportunities.
UNSW Centre for Social Impact in collaboration with the Economic Empowerment of Women (EEW) Unit at the Timor-Leste Presidential Palace, are working together to strengthen women’s entrepreneurship. This partnership is designed to support women across different stages of their journey, ensuring that empowerment translates into broader civic and economic outcomes.
Spanning across grassroots engagement through to the development of enhanced social and economic structures, the UNSW CSI and EEW collaboration includes a series of research visits to better understand the opportunities and challenges faced by women-led enterprises in Timor-Leste.
In September 2025, the team spent time in local communities with women beginning their entrepreneurial journey, where efforts to improve financial literacy are laying the foundations for business development. At the Presidential Palace, they participated in a forum on strengthening civic wealth creation, engaging with government and community stakeholders on the broader systems that enable entrepreneurship. The visit also included a fundraising workshop with NGOs, exploring strategies for diversifying funding streams and recognising the potential already present within local organisations.
“The ideas and entrepreneurial spirit were the highest I have seen. Fundraising isn’t just raising money but realising and tapping into an entrepreneurial spirit. I was touched when one participant said, “I didn’t think this would be for me. But now I see we have so many skills, so much to offer, we don’t just need to rely on others - we can do this for ourselves,” said UNSW CSI Lecturer Lee Cooper, who led the Fundraising Workshop.
A central insight emerging from the visit was the identification of a “missing middle” in women’s economic success, a group that sits between early-stage entrepreneurs and established enterprises. These women have promising but still fragile businesses and they often lack the knowledge, networks, capital, and institutional support to grow. Supporting this segment is essential for grassroots wealth creation and long-term sustainability.
Reflecting on the barriers faced by early-stage entrepreneurs, Associate Professor Melissa Edwards, Research and Innovation Director at UNSW CSI, noted:
“Recognising that an economy is only as strong as its weakest links, it is on all of us to ensure that women on the start of their entrepreneurial journey can connect with resilient supply chains from the outset, paving the way for their future success.”
By addressing the missing middle and strengthening connections between grassroots initiatives and wider systems, the collaboration between UNSW CSI and the Presidential Palace’s EEW Unit aims to contribute to a stronger foundation for civic wealth creation in Timor-Leste.