COTABATO CITY (Dec. 12, 2023) – The Bangsamoro Parliament Committee on Finance, and Budget and Management approved today, Dec. 12, Bangsamoro Youth Commission’s 2024 budget proposal worth P97.66 million.
BYC Chairperson Marjanie Mimbantas Macasalong served as a resource person for the budget deliberation and was led by Committee Chairperson MP Eduard Guerra and Vice-Chairperson MP Baintan Adil-Ampatuan.
The Bangsamoro Parliament committee approved the 2024 BYC budget of P97,656,116, which posted an increase of P10,480,714, or approximately 12.04 percent higher than the 2023 budget of P87,175,402.
Chairperson Macasalong said BYC has five major programs in 2024 that include stakeholders and partnership building, youth responsive policy and development, public engagement programs, monitoring and evaluation, and youth, peace and security.
“These programs reflect our mandate as a policy-making and coordinating body for the youth in the Bangsamoro region,” Macasalong added.
In 2024, BYC will craft and mainstream several policies for the youth, which include the drafting of the Comprehensive Bangsamoro Youth Development Plan (CBYDP) and the Bangsamoro Action Plan on Youth, Peace and Security (BAP-YPS). CBYDP will serve as a regional policy to promote youth rights and welfare in coordination with several BARMM line agencies. BAP-YPS, on the other hand, will engage BARMM agencies in anchoring their programs that will promote youth’s participation and partnership, among others, in promoting peace, security, and peacebuilding in the region.
Policy research with a gender lens will also be conducted under the Ideation Impact Challenge, and another batch of youth parliamentarians will convene and pass youth bills and resolutions under the Bangsamoro Youth Parliament (BYP).
An advocacy campaign will also be conducted on the Bangsamoro Electoral Code and the Bangsamoro Local Governance Code to educate the youth on these crucial regional measures. Local youth development plans and accredited youth organizations will also undergo some evaluation to assess their effectivity and alignment with national and regional development plans.
Since 2021, more than 5,500 youth have been engaged in programs anchored on nine centers of youth participation, such as civic engagement, health, education, environment, global mobility, among others. Sangguniang Kabataan officials across the Bangsamoro region have also underwent mandatory and continuing trainings with BYC, the Ministry of the Interior and Local Government.
BYC is also implementing several projects under the Special Development Fund that primarily aims to reconstruct, rehabilitate, and develop conflict-affected and conflict-vulnerable areas in the Bangsamoro region.
The Bangsamoro Youth Commission is an office attached to the Office of the Chief Minister, created and established by virtue of the Bangsamoro Autonomy Act No. 10. The BYC, according to the BAA 10 shall serve as the primary policy-making and coordinating body of the Bangsamoro Government in all matters affecting the youth. Further, the Commission ensures compliance therewith by all ministries, agencies, offices and other instrumentalities of the Bangsamoro. (BYC PR Unit/RMM | With photos from BTA Parliament)
