The Agora Food Studio (AFS) is the first ‘food-hub’ in Timor-Leste. It works primarily to promote Timorese food culture internationally, while providing employment and addressing development issues such as malnutrition. The UNDP has collaborated with UNICEF, the Government of Timor-Leste, Qatar Fund for Development and German Development Corporation to support AFS as a part of our ‘accelerator lab’ initiative. The Accelerator Labs are UNDP’s new way of working in development. The labs work together with national and global partners to find radically new approaches that fit the complexity of current development challenges. The labs will introduce new services, backed by evidence and practice, and accelerate the testing and dissemination of solutions within and across countries. In Timor-Leste’s context the accelerator lab is focused on job creation to maximise the potential of the ‘youth boom’ Timor will face in coming years.
