The Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) joined the national workshop on fiscal management on March 11-12, 2015 in Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), Makati City.

Said workshop aimed to explore the most appropriate institutional, capacity building, resource mobilization and expenditure management options for efficient, transparent and accountable fiscal management in the Bangsamoro.

Leading the BDA representatives were Dr. Saffrullah Dipatuan, BOD Chairman, members of the board Jamel Macaraya and Macacuna Manongtawar, and Executive Director Mohammad S. Yacob. Other participants from the agency included Finance Head Hamodi Tiboron and finance staff Anwar Abdullah, Hafidullah Kasan, Gina Sapi and Sittie Norhanah Solaiman.

Dr. Dipatuan presented highlights and flagship programs of the Bangsamoro Development Plan and the role of the private sectors in the BDP.

Among the topics discussed were institution and capacity building, creating own revenue sources, inter-governmental fiscal transfers, roles and responsibilities during the first day of the activity.

Also discussed were budgeting and accounting with transparency and accountability, the role of GOCCs, PPPs and domestic economic zones in the Bangsamoro, and planning for efficient and transparent fiscal management in the Bangsamoro.

The workshop is jointly organized by the Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF) and the Philippine Centre for Islam and Democracy (PCID) with former secretary of the Department of Finance of the Philippine Government, Gary Teves as lead convener.

For BDA, such activity helped in the continuing objective of linkages and networking, capacity building, the current institutionalization initiatives of the agency and for its future role in the Bangsamoro.