UN vows continued support for BARMM’s peace, dev’t initiatives
DAVAO CITY – The United Nations (UN) has vowed to continue supporting peace and development initiatives in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Arnaud Peral, UN Resident Coordinator in the Philippines, made the assurance during last week’s 5th Bangsamoro International Development Partners Forum (BIDPF) here, which gathered at least 200 officials or representatives of major international, national, and regional institutions working to improve BARMM’s sustainable development.
“The United Nations system remains deeply committed to BARMM,” he said during the forum themed “From Promise to Prosperity: Celebrating Gains, Accelerating BARMM’s Transformation Through Strategic Partnerships.”
He stressed that at least 18 UN organizations are present in the Bangsamoro region, which comprises the provinces of Maguindanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, and Tawi-Tawi, and the cities of Marawi, Lamitan, and Cotabato, the seat of the BARMM government.
Established in 2019, BARMM is in a transition period, governed by the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) or the Bangsamoro Parliament. The creation of the Bangsamoro region is the key component of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), the final peace agreement signed by the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in 2014 after 17 years of negotiations.
READ: Calls mount vs further delay of BARMM polls
With a workforce of at least 230 personnel, Peral said the UN agencies have hired workers mostly from the Bangsamoro region, noting that these workers knew the “challenges and (knew) how to bring solutions.”
These UN agencies are working across the BARMM together with its various ministries, civil society organizations, grassroots communities, and other development partners, he stated.
Peral said the UN agencies had built trust and forged a strong partnership with the Bangsamoro government and other partners in delivering peace and development dividends to the area.
Among the UN agencies present in the Bangsamoro region are the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Development Fund (UNDP), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO), World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the World Food Program (WFP).
“At the heart of our engagement is peacebuilding, turning political progress into tangible socioeconomic gains,” Peral stressed.
For example, in Lanao del Sur, women peace facilitators, supported by the UN Peacebuilding Fund, helped mediate tensions and rebuild trust in communities affected by conflict, he said.
“One of them told us (that) peace is not just the absence of war, it’s the presence of dignity – that spirit captures what this transition is all about,” he said.
Under the 2024-2028 cooperation framework in the BARMM, he said the UN system prioritized governance, strengthening public financial management and institutional capacity, working alongside ministries to design and operationalize sustainable systems.
Engr. Mohajirin Ali, director general of the Bangsamoro Planning and Development Authority, which organized the forum, said some of the milestones achieved together with international partner donors included the formulation of the Bangsamoro Development Plan and the establishment of the Bangsamoro International Development Assistance Committee.
“Our work here is firmly anchored in the principles of partnership, shared responsibility, and mutual trust, ensuring that development assistance remains perfectly aligned with the priorities of the BARMM,” he said in a statement./coa
