COTABATO CITY (Dec. 12, 2022) — The Bangsamoro Youth Commission (BYC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) officially launched the Policy Development Manual Sunday, December 11, at Alnor Convention Center, Cotabato City.
BYC Chairperson Marjanie Mimbantas Macasalong said the Manual will serve as the principal and guiding document of the Commission in fortifying its policy development processes within the office and across different levels of governance.
Moreover, Chairperson Macasalong signified the manual as a remarkable leap of the Commission in realizing further its functions and mandates.
“This Manual is such as major feat in our Commission. It is a document that forms part of our mission of laying the foundations of an ever-functioning Commission that knows which appropriate road it will take and which policy direction it will set forth for the ministries, agencies, and offices implementing programs relevant to our Bangsamoro youth,” he said.
With support from the IOM, through its Supporting Conflict Transformation Toward Effective Peacebuilding in the Bangsamoro Region or the STEP-BARMM Project, the Manual was realized as a result of collaborative efforts of resource persons both from BYC employees and Bangsamoro Youth Parliament (BYP) alumni.
BYC Commissioner Nasserudin Dunding said the Manual will be adopted in the BYC En banc meeting.
“We stand on the ground in the BYC, that we don’t deserve a non-moving documents… We don’t deserve a paper that only ends after it was launched — a paper that is not worthy of being fought,” Dunding added.
Meanwhile, BYC Development Management Officer Rodolfo Matucan, Jr. who led the initiative in crafting the Manual, said the youth should also have a platform where they are involved in discussing societal concerns that do not merely focus on “youth issues”.
“We should be included in initiatives aiming to address broad societal issues and not only on youth issues based on stereotypes and assumptions. Youth should also have the space to define and act on their issues — not just sit on the table, but also shape the agenda,” Matucan said.
During the launching, a talkshow was also held to provide an avenue for the volunteer writers to share their thoughts and shed light on the salient features of the Manual.
Among the panelist was Moner Ramos-Datu, a fourth year college student of Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan. He said that the Manual provides various opportunities for youth engagement and development.
“This manual definitely favors the youth because of its primary aim– that is to establish a clear and strong policy process which ensures the needs and aspirations of the Bangsamoro youth to be heard and championed in the [Bangsamoro] Parliament,” he said.
Lemuel Dicolano, also a volunteer writer and a fourth year college student of the same institution, challenged the Commission to advance the welfare of the youth through inclusive legislation by operationalizing the Manual.
“We, the youth, may be the future of our region, we may have a voice in the decision-making process, but we cannot truly have an impact on the present or the future if our voices are merely heard and not listened with,” he said.
“Ipaglaban niyo ang aming mga pangarap. Ipaglaban niyo ang mga bagay na ipinagkait sa inyo para sa amin. Ipaglaban nyo kami,” Dicolano marking his speech.
As the youth continuously call for inclusivity in the decision-making process, BARMM Chief Minister Ahod Balawag Ebrahim noted that the Bangsamoro Government, through the BYC, has never left the voices of the youth behind in providing them avenues to be heard and recognized. Thus, the Manual serves a space to cater their concerns systematically.
“Crafting this Policy Development Manual enables BYC to formulate decisions in a more systematic manner, have a better perspective on how these decisions will be implemented, and maximize the resources of the agency to efficiently deliver quality services for the welfare of the youth,” Ebrahim said. (BYC PR Unit/AAA)
