COTABATO CITY (PIA) — In a bid to strengthen its ongoing efforts to develop and strategize the Bangsamoro region’s social protection system, the Bangsamoro government has recently organized a consultation workshop in this city for the Bangsamoro Social Protection Plan (BSPP) 2024-2028.
The Bangsamoro government’s Ministry of Social Services and Development (MSSD-BARMM), through its Planning and Development Division, is the lead agency of the BSPP.
MSSD-BARMM has also collaborated with other partners from the BARMM’s Special Geographic Area (SGA) to craft the BSPP.
The BARMM Social Protection Program serves as a medium-term strategic framework with the objective of improving the region’s social protection system.
Given the distinct socio-cultural, economic, and environmental setting of BARMM, a contextualized approach to social protection is essential, the MSSD said.
In his opening remarks, lawyer Mohammad Muktadir Ahmad Estrella, director general of MSSD, emphasized the importance of these consultations in crafting the said plan.
“We aim to ensure that our investments in social services are aligned with the shared goals and aspirations of the Bangsamoro region, especially for the BARMM Special Geographic Area,” he stressed.
Estrella also highlighted the unique challenges faced by the BARMM Special Geographic Area, noting, “The SGA communities are finally receiving the attention and services they deserve, but there is still much work to do.”
The series of consultation workshops provided a pivotal platform for localizing solutions to ensure that interventions align with regional realities and priorities, effectively addressing the specific needs of the communities within the Bangsamoro region.
Dante Mamparair, a representative from the Indigenous Peoples (IP) community, expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to participate in the consultation.
“This is the first time that IPs have participated in an event like this as representatives. What matters most to us is that everyone understood what we discussed, and we voiced our concerns about what we see in our community. When we return home, we can tell our community that we have made our requests and they are taking them into consideration,” he said.
With the conclusion of the provincial consultation workshops, BARMM is confident that the BSPP is moving closer to its goal.
The next steps are to validate and finalize the BSPP with BARMM Ministries, Offices, and Agencies (MOAs), followed by the preparation of a publication-ready BSPP document.
The official launching ceremony will take place in October this year, according to MSSD. (LTB – PIA Cotabato City)
