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| His Serene Highness Prince Philipp Von und zu Liechtenstein tours the Sunset Fair (Photo copyright Barnezco) |
Last Friday (November 11th) we were honoured to receive a brief visit from HSH Prince Philipp of Liechtenstein to the Sunset Fair. The Prince came to Dili with a delegation of businessmen from the tiny principality, which is situated in the mountainous region between Switzerland and Austria, and had meetings with President Jose Ramos-Horta, Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao and various government ministers during his stay. He was also a participant in a Seminar on Strategic Asset Allocation held under the auspices of the Ministry of Finance and had a meeting with the Governor of the Central Bank (Banco Central de Timor-Leste). Liechtenstein has the world's second highest per capita gross domestic product in the world (behind the Principality of Monaco). HSH Prince Philipp was expected to sign an MOU aimed at enabling bilateral cooperation and strengthening business ties between the two countries; it was also hoped that the visit would serve to introduce the Liechtenstein Royal family to Timor-Leste as a potential tourist destination and investment opportunity.
HSH was given a brief tour of the stalls at the Sunset Fair and particularly admired the tais and basket work on sale there. He also enjoyed a traditional dance performance by Cultura Millennium. HSH said that he admired the white-sand beach at Kristu Rei and was interested to learn that Timor-Leste had some of the world's best scuba diving and immense marine bio-diversity.
Prince Philipp's itinerary also included a brief tour of Dili's beauty spots and the tourism training centre ETDA (East Timor Development Agency), as well as the Alola Foundation. On Saturday, the delegation paid their respects at the Santa Cruz Cemetery prior to their departure.
