The Asia Foundation Philippines’ Australian Government-funded Coalitions for Change (CfC) program and USAID-funded FORWARD Bangsamoro project worked together to introduce the Development Entrepreneurship approach to policy reform to civil society leaders in Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) through an Introduction to Development Entrepreneurship workshop on September 6-8, 2023, in Davao City, Philippines. Development Entrepreneurship (DE) is the Coalitions for Change program’s homegrown approach to policy reform that brings entrepreneurial logic and approaches to policy work for transformative and sustainable impact, conceptualized by CfC’s Strategic Advisor Jaime Faustino based on his and his colleagues’ experience and reading of development literature.
A collective Philippines office effort, the workshop brought together partners of other Foundation programs operating in the region, such as Accelerate Women, and Peace and Stability; civil society leaders from BARMM’s island and mainland provinces to brought together for the first time under the Foundation to discuss development issues, methods, and paths forward for the region.
The workshop included an elaboration on the 12 Principles of DE by Jaime Faustino; case studies on the real-life applications of DE by CfC consultants, Toix Cerna, and Atty. Ona Caritos, who is also the Executive Director of Legal Network for Truthful Elections, Inc. (LENTE); followed by a series of sessions on the DE tools. The FORWARD Bangsamoro team arranged for orientations on the parliamentary processes in the Bangsamoro Parliament by Atty. Abdel Disangcopan, Director II of the Bangsamoro Parliament’s Statutory Committees Support Service, and Member of Parliament (MP) Atty. Mary Ann Arnado.
The Asia Foundation Philippines Country Representative Sam Chittick lauded the partnership between the “two different programs operating in different development areas and conducting different activities… [with the] common goal of fostering and bringing about transformative positive impact for Filipino communities.” Both FORWARD Bangsamoro project Chief of Party (COP) Cris Cayon, and MP Arnado underscored the golden opportunity before changemakers in the BARMM in the extension of the BARMM transition from 2022 to 2025 per Republic Act 11593, extending the life of Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), the region’s interim lawmaking body.
The formation of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao that started from the enactment of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (Republic Act 11054) in 2018, and ratification via 2019 plebiscite, was the fruit of decades of conflict resolution and peacebuilding efforts to end the protracted conflict in the region. The transition from conflict to peace to self-governance is ongoing and will continue up to 2025 under the BTA, giving leaders from the academe, civil society, the business sector, and indigenous communities a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to shape the region’s policies and government structures.
Atty. Aquino “Kenz” Sajili of the Tawi-Tawi Provincial Chamber of Commerce and Industry expressed his gratitude for the activity and the fresh ideas it brought for his advocacy for access to education in the pondohan communities (far-flung communities in Tawi-Tawi comprised of houses on stilts in the middle of the sea) where he hails from, and partnerships with new colleagues made at the workshop, like Mindanao State University’s Prof. Wilham Hailaya, and Tarbilang Foundation Executive Director Ms. Jurma Tikmasan. This is but one of several introductions made and new partnerships formed during the activity geared towards promoting development in the region.
The workshop concluded with a discussion on ways forward led by FORWARD Bangsamoro COP Cris Cayon, to great enthusiasm from the participants, and CfC’s Leadership Development Team.
