Sunday, January 20, 2008 Mindanao fund gets LGU backing
KORONADAL CITY -- Local chief executives in the southern Philippines have vowed to support the implementation of the Mindanao Trust Fund that seeks to assist socio-economic thrusts in conflict affected areas in the island, a top National Government official said.
Jesus Dureza, presidential adviser on the peace process, said the Bangsamoro Development Agency, the development arm of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, also committed full support to the trust fund's rehabilitation and development programs in war-torn areas in Mindanao.
"Local government units play an important role for the successful implementation of the trust fund and we're glad they are backing this initiative," Dureza said in a gathering early last week of local chief executives and other partners in Davao City.
The Mindanao Trust Fund, broken into two phases, has been formally established by the World Bank in July 2005 upon the request of the National Government.
The trust fund's phase one launched March of 2006 in Cotabato City had an initial funding of about P132 million.
Later on, the European Union added some P66 million. Last year, Canada pledged P40 million to the trust fund. Canada also contributed P30 million during the launching of the first phase in Cotabato.
The trust fund focuses on providing grant funding to conflict-affected areas, with the priority of establishing existing communities and resettling displaced persons.
Phase 1, which is prior to the signing of a final peace agreement and dubbed MTF-Reconstruction and Development Program, aims to provide capacity building to the implementing agency, which is the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA).
It also includes pilot subprojects in several barangays and municipalities to be implemented by BDA with onsite coaches from a contracted service provider, as well as the organizational set-up for implementation of sub-projects under Phase 2.
The second phase will entail the implementation of the full program through disbursement of block grants to finance sub-projects in conflict-affected areas.
It includes the provision of technical assistance, the expansion of capacity building and a phased transfer of program management responsibility to the Bangsamoro entity to be confirmed after the peace signing.
Dureza said the MTF-RDP will strengthen the "partnership between the government, MILF and donor countries" to advance development efforts needed for Mindanao.
"Even without a final peace agreement with the MILF, we have laid down the touching ground. This would support the table negotiations [currently going on]," he said.
Donor countries earlier pledged to provide some $50 million (at least P2.4 billion) to the Mindanao Trust Fund once a final peace accord is reached between the government and the Moro rebels.
Current peace negotiations between the government and the Moro rebels are on a deadlock, after Moro peace negotiators last month walked out from a meeting expected to thresh out kinks in the ticklish ancestral domain agenda.
Danda Juanday, BDA chairperson, said the agency has been working closely with the local government units for the implementation of the trust fund's programs.
"A full scale implementation of the peace initiatives and development efforts are expected to take effect after a comprehensive peace pact is signed [between the government and the MILF]," Juanday said.
"Political solution to the Mindanao problem is imperative - that's the only way we can achieve peace which will eventually pave the way for the all-out delivery of development efforts to the war-ravaged Bangsamoro communities", he added.
