Joint Patrol Strengthens Monitoring and Compliance in Timor-Leste’s Samba Sembilan Marine Protected Area

On July 17, 2026, Coral Triangle Center (CTC) and its partners conducted the first Resource Utilization Monitoring (RUM) and joint patrol in the Samba Sembilan Marine Protected Area (MPA) in Liquiça, Timor-Leste. As the patrol boat moved through the protected waters, a pod of dolphins surfaced alongside the team, an unexpected sight and an encouraging sign of the area’s thriving, healthy marine ecosystem.

Regular monitoring and strong collaboration are essential to ensuring that MPAs remain effective spaces for both biodiversity conservation and sustainable resource use. Through RUM, conservation managers can better understand how marine resources are being used, identify challenges, and gather information to guide future management decisions.

The patrol brought together 10 personnel from CTC, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry (MALFF), the Samba Sembilan MPA Management Unit, the Bazartete Administrative Authority, and the Polícia Nacional de Timor-Leste (PNTL). Before departing, the team held a briefing to review patrol objectives, assign responsibilities, and confirm that all participants understood the monitoring methodology and safety procedures.

Through the patrol, the team documented fishing activities, aquaculture operations, and compliance with zoning regulations. The results showed that coastal communities continue to actively depend on marine resources within the area, with seven groups of fishers and 14 groups of seaweed farmers recorded during the monitoring.

Encouragingly, most fishing activities observed during the patrol took place within the designated zones. However, the team also identified three groups of fishers operating inside the protected zone, highlighting the need for continued awareness, monitoring, enforcement, and coordination with communities and authorities to strengthen compliance with MPA regulations. MPA Management Unit and relevant government authorities will coordinate and follow up on the zoning violations.

Following the field activities, representatives from CTC, MALFF, the Samba Sembilan MPA Management Unit, and partner institutions met with the Bazartete Administrative Authority in Ulmera Village to share and discuss the findings, review and reflect on the patrol experience, and identify follow-up actions.

Rather than serving solely as an enforcement mechanism, the monitoring results will also inform future awareness-raising efforts, stakeholder engagement, and adaptive management measures. By combining monitoring with collaboration, the partners aim to encourage sustainable resource use while protecting critical marine habitats.

As Timor-Leste continues to strengthen the management of its MPAs, regular RUM and joint patrols will play an increasingly important role in safeguarding marine biodiversity and ensuring that conservation measures are effectively implemented. The first patrol in Samba Sembilan MPA demonstrates the value of cross-sector collaboration in balancing environmental protection with the needs of coastal communities, while laying the foundation for more effective and sustainable marine protected area management in the years ahead.

Writer: Asia Salsabilla, Egidio Boavida
Photos: Egidio Boavida/CTC