AROUND P2.06 billion has been committed by foreign institutions to support women, peace and security in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU) said on Wednesday.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) also invested P275 million to reduce mortality in births and increase birth registrations in the BARMM. The project will be implemented by the United Nations Population Fund.
“Most people in the BARMM do not have a birth certificate… and without (identity documents)… they will have a hard time being entitled to social protection like PhilHealth (Philippine Health Insurance Corp.), universal healthcare,” OPAPRU Secretary Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. said at a briefing.
“So JICA and the other donor partners came together (for) projects to improve the lives (of people in the BARMM),” he added.
The Japanese embassy also provided P189 million to fund the production of food for 10,000 farmers, Mr. Galvez said. This is expected to feed 15,000 children in the Bangsamoro.
On Sept. 27, JICA, the Korea International Cooperation Agency, and the US Agency for International Development pooled funds amounting to P1.6 billion to support maternal care for children of up to three years in the BARMM.
Government agencies must ensure that women are considered in their respective budget proposals, Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman said.
“When you prepare the budget, the primary purpose is to provide jobs, to give employment to the people. (I hope that) whatever the program, project, or activity, agencies make sure that women are included in budget proposals,” she told the briefing.
Ms. Pangandaman noted that 16.68% of the national budget in 2023 was allocated for gender and development, exceeding the 5% mandatory allocation for gender programs, projects, and activities.
However, only 0.51% of the 2023 budget for gender and development (GAD) went to women, peace and security agencies, Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) Chairperson Ermelita V. Valdeavilla told reporters.
Further, the GAD budget only had a 13% utilization rate in 2023, “indicating critical challenges in fully implementing GAD plans and programs,” the PCW said in its 2023 budget report.
For 2025, the government is allocating $1.7 billion (P98.97 billion) for the social protection of survivors, including programs for gender and development, internally displaced persons, and disaster relief assistance, Ms. Pangandaman said.
Around $178.9 million (P10.41 billion) is also earmarked next year for family health, immunization, nutrition, and responsible parenting projects. The Bangsamoro Umpungan sa Nutrisyon Program will also receive $2.8 million (P163 million) for 2025.
Ms. Pangandaman also noted that P800 million will be allocated next year for the expansion of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) to pregnant and lactating women, which would also cover their children’s first 1,000 days.
During the recently concluded International Conference on Women, Peace and Security, ministers and representatives from over 70 United Nations member-states adopted the Pasay Declaration on Women, Peace and Security.
“The declaration highlights the several crucial dimensions, including the increasingly urgent nexus between climate, peace, and security,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo told reporters. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz
