Friday, October 12, 2007 Ledesma: Australia offers grants By Jun Ledesma Sunbursts
I READ from yesterdays issue about Malaysia's threat to pull out as mediator between the government and the MILF peace negotiation that it had offered to host.
By the looks of it, Kuala Lumpur is getting tired and impatient. Negotiation is never easy but it is better that the mouth do the talking rather than the rattling guns.
Negotiating for peace is one of the many vital aspects in liberating Mindanao from the conflicts that has been stirred by secessionist forces, the other is the overwhelming support that the region is getting to liberate its people from poverty.
The strategies seem to be working and we are not running short of volunteer countries who want to broker peace at the same time nations who want to help in resettling and rehabilitating those who had been displaced by armed conflicts.
These are significant developments. The morbid landscapes of the past encounters had metamorphosed into economically active communities. The inroads to peace by way of resettlement and assistance that creates livelihood opportunities have seemly gained headway than the negotiations at KL.
The support from many satisfied nations, among them United Sttes of America, Canada, Australia, Japan, and the European Communities has not ebbed. Recently the US stepped up its peace investments by earmarking $190-million AID program for Mindanao. It keeps on coming.
Last week, Australia opened a new window of opportunities when it opened its Enterprise Challenge Fund in the Philippines with special preference for Mindanao emerging entrepreneurs.
One thing good with these foreign aids, including Australia's ECF, is that they work it out either directly with the beneficiaries or through NGOs with proven track record.
I think that administrators of the program are wary about government men whose agenda is how to make quick buck. At this time when nearly every project cannot move without a politician, or a well-connected "commissioner" and the big guys in the government department out to make a fast buck on the projects, the better way to undertake Aid programs is indeed by skirting the pacmen.
The country manager of ECF, Jason Magnaye, is working hard to make the grants available for this program of work for project proponents who are based in Mindanao. For the project concept to qualify, it should have the potential to be economically viable and must aim at generating employment opportunities in communities where they operate.
The other good thing about this grant is that ECF will help beneficiaries find export market for their products. There you are. If you have a great idea this is the time for you to grab the opportunity.
BTW, finally DOTC is inviting local telecommunications firms to participate in the bidding of a broadband project. President Arroyo should go farther by scrapping the CyberEd project and incorporate the program to just one broadband network. Then she should proceed to hang those who made her believe that there was nothing wrong with the NBN and CyberEd negotiations.
