Polity · 2006 CE – present
East Timor
Repúblika Demokrátika Timor-Leste · República Democrática de Timor-Leste · Timor-Leste
Also recorded as Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
- Peak recorded area
- 18,567 km²
- 2006 CE
- Rulers on record
- 13
- from 1975 CE
- Data series
- 309
- 2006 CE–2025 CE
Overview
Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and the islands of Atauro and Jaco, for a total land area of 14,950 square kilometres (5,770 sq mi). Timor-Leste shares a land border with Indonesia to the west; Australia is the country's southern neighbour, across the Timor Sea.
Lead section from Wikipedia, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article.
Territory
2 dated territorial extents on record from Cliopatria. Areas are measured off the recorded polygons; the line steps because each extent holds until the next one is recorded — nothing is interpolated. CShapes 2.0 holds 2 further extents, measured on a different basis and deliberately not merged into this series.
The record
The best-attested series in each category; where several projects publish the same quantity, the one with the most observations is shown. Each row is the most recent value the record holds at or before the last complete year, shown with the year that value belongs to. Some statistical series also publish forward projections — the year column is the honest guide. Nothing on this page is interpolated or estimated by us.
People
6 of 56 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Life Expectancy165 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 68.13years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Population143 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 1.4Mpersons2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Net Migration141 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | -2,550persons2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Population Growth141 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 1.26% annual2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy Female140 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 69.91years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy Male140 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 66.47years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
Economy
6 of 127 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita PPP220 obs · 1800 CE–2019 CE | 3,151int'l $ (inflation adj.)2019 CE · Gapminder |
| Fao Cattle Stocks64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 238.9Khead2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Cereals Area Harvested64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 62.5Kha2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Cereals Production64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 132Ktonnes2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Cereals Yield64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 2,112.2hg_per_ha2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Chickens Stocks64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 571head2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
Military
6 of 9 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Military Expenditure % GDP21 obs · 2005 CE–2024 CE | 2.66% of GDP2024 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Military Expenditure Usd20 obs · 2005 CE–2024 CE | 46.4Mcurrent US$2024 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Armed Forces Personnel16 obs · 2004 CE–2020 CE | 2,000persons2020 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| CINC Score15 obs · 2002 CE–2016 CE | 0CINC (share of world capability)2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
| Energy Consumption15 obs · 2002 CE–2016 CE | 80Kcoal-ton equivalents2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
| Iron Steel Production15 obs · 2002 CE–2016 CE | 0tons2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
Territory & resources
6 of 56 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Arable Land %126 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 7.5% of land area2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Forest Area %68 obs · 1990 CE–2023 CE | 61.66% of land area2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Agricultural Land %63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 22.96%2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Arable Land per capita Ha63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 0.0805hectares per person2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Fao Agricultural Land63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 341.4Kha2023 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Arable Land63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 111.5Kha2023 CE · FAOSTAT |
Governance
6 of 29 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Electoral Democracy Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.733index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Regime Type125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 2RoW index (0-3)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Participatory Democracy Index63 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.455index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Largest Govt Party Vote Share49 obs · 1975 CE–2023 CE | 49.58percent2023 CE · Database of Political Institutions (DPI) 2023 |
| Legislature Total Seats49 obs · 1975 CE–2023 CE | 65seats2023 CE · Database of Political Institutions (DPI) 2023 |
| Num Government Parties49 obs · 1975 CE–2023 CE | 57count2023 CE · Database of Political Institutions (DPI) 2023 |
Development
6 of 32 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Freedom Of Expression Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.837index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Who Skilled Birth Attendance39 obs · 1985 CE–2023 CE | 192.36%2023 CE · WHO Global Health Observatory |
| Clean Fuel Access %24 obs · 2000 CE–2023 CE | 19.1%2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Electricity Access %24 obs · 2000 CE–2023 CE | 100%2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Electricity Access Rural %24 obs · 2000 CE–2023 CE | 100%2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Electricity Access Urban %24 obs · 2000 CE–2023 CE | 100%2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
Rulers
13 on record with dated reigns. Reign years follow the house convention: BCE years are negative.
- Francisco Xavier do AmaralPresident of East Timor1975 CE
- Mari AlkatiriPrime Minister of East Timor2002 CE – 2006 CE
- Xanana GusmãoPresident of East Timor2002 CE – 2007 CE
- José Ramos-HortaPrime Minister of East Timor2006 CE – 2007 CE
- Estanislau da SilvaPrime Minister of East Timor2007 CE
- Taur Matan RuakPresident of East Timor2012 CE – 2017 CE
- Rui Maria de AraújoPrime Minister of East Timor2015 CE – 2017 CE
- Francisco GuterresPresident of East Timor2017 CE – 2022 CE
- Taur Matan RuakHead of Government2018 CE – 2023 CE
- Armanda Berta dos SantosDeputy Prime Minister of East Timor2020 CE – 2023 CE
- José ReisDeputy Prime Minister of East Timor2020 CE – 2023 CE
- José Ramos-HortaHead of State2022 CE –
- Xanana GusmãoHead of Government2023 CE –
Country profile
From the CIA World Factbook 2024. Long entries are trimmed at a sentence boundary.
- Location
- Southeastern Asia, northwest of Australia in the Lesser Sunda Islands at the eastern end of the Indonesian archipelago; note - Timor-Leste includes the eastern half of the island of Timor, the Oecussi (Ambeno) region on the northwest portion of the island of Timor, and the islands of Pulau Atauro and Pulau Jaco
- Government type
- semi-presidential republic
- Executive branch
- chief of state: President José RAMOS-HORTA (since 20 May 2022); head of government: Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana GUSMAO (since 1 July 2023); cabinet: Council of Ministers; ministers proposed to the prime minister by the coalition in the Parliament and sworn in by the president;
- Ethnic groups
- Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian) (includes Tetun, Mambai, Tokodede, Galoli, Kemak, Baikeno), Melanesian-Papuan (includes Bunak, Fataluku, Bakasai), small Chinese minority
- Natural resources
- gold, petroleum, natural gas, manganese, marble
- Economy
- lower middle-income Southeast Asian economy; government expenditures funded via oil fund drawdowns; endemic corruption undermines growth; foreign aid-dependent; wide-scale poverty, unemployment, and illiteracy
Memberships
- United NationsUNInternational organisation · member2002 CE –
Sources
Every figure above comes from one of these. Nothing on this page is estimated, interpolated or model-generated.
CIA World Factbook 2024
Seshat Global History Databank. Cliopatria: a historical basemap of polity borders (cliopatria.geojson).
Correlates of War NMC v6.0v6.0
Singer, J.D. (1987). National Material Capabilities Data (NMC), v6.0. Correlates of War Project.
Free academic use, citation
Database of Political Institutions (DPI) 2023DPI 2023
Cruz, C., Keefer, P. & Scartascini, C. (2023). Database of Political Institutions 2023. Inter-American Development Bank.
IDB open data, attribution
FAOSTAT2024 release
FAO (2024). FAOSTAT Statistical Database. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome.
CC BY 4.0
Gapminderv14 / systema globalis
Gapminder Foundation. Gapminder systema globalis dataset.
CC BY 4.0
UN World Population Prospects 20242024
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2024). World Population Prospects 2024.
CC BY 3.0 IGO
V-Dem v15v15
Coppedge, M. et al. (2025). V-Dem Country-Year Dataset v15. Varieties of Democracy Project.
Free academic/non-commercial use, attribution
WHO Global Health Observatory2024
World Health Organization (2024). Global Health Observatory data repository.
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO
Wikipedia contributors. Article lead sections, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
World Bank World Development Indicators2024 release
World Bank (2024). World Development Indicators. Washington, DC.
CC BY 4.0
East Timor is one of the polities with a sourced record deep enough to publish.