Members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are now confident to come out in the open and participate in the implementation of community driven projects in their respective areas.
The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Social Fund Project (ASFP), the region’s development arm, observed such following the Oct. 15, 2012 signing of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro entity by government and MILF peace negotiators in Malacañang.
“Even before the FAB adoption, small groups of (MILF) rebels had been part of the process, kasama sila sa pagpili ng mga projects para sa kanila,” revealed ASFP chief Abba Kuaman in a Friday press conference here.
Kuaman added that it is only now that the MILF has openly supported government projects in their communities.
In Maguindanao alone, the government has acknowledged certain MILF-influenced areas in the towns of Datu Piang, Shariff Aguak, Mamasapano, Datu Saidona and Datu Anggal Midtimbang.
The ASFP was created on Sept. 2, 2002 by virtue of Executive Order 124 and later amended by Executive Order 518 dated March 21, 2006 transferring the management of the office from the Central Fund Management Office to ASFP Project Management Office under the supervision of the autonomous government.
Established as an offshoot to the Sept. 2, 1996 final peace accord between the national government and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), the ASFP was designed to foster sustainable development in the ARMM through reducing poverty and establish a support mechanism for the promotion of peaceful and safe environment in war-torn areas.
Funded by the national government through a loan from the World Bank (WB) and supplemented by the
Due to its suitable performance, the WB through the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), an international financial institution which offers loans to middle-income developing countries, granted the Philippine government and additional US 30-million dollars in November 2010 for the ASFP’s continuing projects in 596 barangays in the region.
Now on its 11th year, the ASFP has managed to aid 2,490 barangays with only 871 villages remaining “unserved”.
“We plan to serve the remaining barangays after the next assessment of the WB and JICA on our current performance,” Kuaman said.
He noted that so far the ASFP has seen no divergence with projects that would be undertaken under the Sajahatra Bangsamoro that aims to uplift the health, education and living condition of MILF communities in the region.
“In the advent of the Bangsamoro entity, we expect the ASFP to elevate to the expectation of the WB on becoming the model for national driven community programs,” Kuaman said.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=505319
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