Tradicionalment, Timor encara és un país molt dependent de l'agricultura de subsistència, l'economia fora de la capital és encara molt dependent de la família, dels seus béns, de tot allò que poden intercanviar, dels membres de la família i dels seus ingressos, i com es distribueixen entre els que ells elegeixen segons les seves tradicions i creences.
Traditionally speaking, Timor is still very much a country dependent on subsistence agriculture, the economy outside the capital is very much dependent on the family, their goods, what they can exchange, their family members and their incomes, and how these are distributed among who they choose in relation to their own traditions and beliefs.