COTABATO CITY (November 07, 2021)—Eighty Young Members of the Parliament (YMP) from across the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and outside areas are attending the Bangsamoro Youth Parliament (BYP) 2022 – The 13th National Youth Parliament Regional Assembly for BARMM in Cotabato City.
The parliament simulation, which started on Monday, Nov. 7 and will end on Friday, Nov. 11, is being organized by the Bangsamoro Youth Commission (BYC) in partnership with the National Youth Commission (NYC), and co-presented by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). It is implemented with support from several Bangsamoro ministries and agencies, and Members of the Parliament.
BYC Chairperson Marjanie Mimbantas Macasalong said the main goal of the BYP is to gather bills relevant to the youth directly from youth leaders.
“This program provides platform for the Commission to deliberate with or solicit freat ideas or proposals from the youth in a productive and meaningful dialogue that culminates in the approval of BYP bills that can be forwarded to the regular Bangsamoro Parliament,” Chairperson Macasalong said.
BYP supports the Bangsamoro Government’s call for Moral Governance, where the youth are given a platform for meaningful participation in governance and decision-making.
Chief Minister Ahod Balawag Ebrahim said the significance of legislation in answerinf challenges in the region, especially for the young folks, are seen and observed. He added that the youth has meaningful contribution in realizing legislative agenda of the present Government of the Day.
“The Bangsamoro Government joins the Bangsamoro Youth Commission in maximizing the contribution of the Bangsamoro youth in nation-building,” Chief Minister Ebrahim said.
BYP also supports the United Nation’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which recognizes young people as “agents of change, entrusted with fulfilling their own potential and ensuring a world fit for future generations.”
Mohamadan Abdulcasan, representative of UNICEF Chief Field Officer for Mindanao Radoslaw Rzehak said the well-being of young Bangsamoro, including the children, should be a top priority when calamity strikes. He added that through the young Members of the Parliament, these rights will be protected by passing bills in the plenary.
“With programs and execution, UNICEF highly encourages BYP to protect the rights of every child, and even adolescents, to survive, thrive, and fulfill their potential at the advantage of their communities,” Abdulcasan said.
The BYP is a capacity-building mechanism that aims to gather youth parliamentarians from all provinces and sectors across the BARMM and outside areas to discuss the prevailing and emerging issues affecting the youth sector, with the objective of crafting possible solutions, developed into policy recommendations through parliamentary context simulating the legislative process.
Throughout the five-day program, the 80 young members of the parliament will undergo a series of lectures and orientations that aim to enhance their skills in parliamentary procedures, advocacy and policy paper-making, resource mobilization, policy lobbying, taking initiatives, and drumming up support for causes.
The BYP also provides an avenue for the youth to discuss concerns and issues anchored on the Enhanced 12-Point Agenda of the Bangsamoro Government – resulting into the crafting of proposed solutions and formulation of policies which can then be lobbied to the Bangsamoro Parliament.
This year’s BYP bears the theme “Bangsamoro Youth in the Transition: Upholding the Gains of Peace and Moral Governance.”
It aims to bring together the youth’s initiatives focused on the development and promotion of youth development policies and programs, anchored on the Enhanced 12-Point Agenda of the Bangsamoro and the Bangsamoro Youth Transition Priority Agenda (BYTPA).
In December 2021, the first-ever BYP was conducted in Cotabato City, which produced 10 significant bills that reflect the collective solutions of young people to the issues and concerns they are facing.
The Bangsamoro Government, through the Bangsamoro Youth Commission, ensures that the youth are given avenues for engagement and participation, such as the Bangsamoro Youth Parliament. (BYC PR Unit/KAA)
