Sharing experience on development works in conflict affected areas in Mindanao, the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) through the Community Development in Conflict-Affected Areas in Mindanao Conflict-Affected (CD-CAAM) Project participated in the International Workshop on Supporting Local Government in Conflict-Affected States on June 16-17, 2014 at the Saro Maria Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Engr. Aida Silongan, Project Management Officer of the CD-CAAM Project represented the BDA in the said international event. She was joined by Ms. Sittie Benazir Ulama, CD CAAM Project Staff.

Engr. Silongan presented the CD-CAAM Project together with Michimasa Numata of ICNet Limited, the service provider of the project.

The presentation was a general brief of the CD-CAAM project highlighting mainly its effective approaches in towards sustainable livelihood projects for agriculture, fishery and infrastructure. The said presentation was also background by the Mindanao Conflict and the on-going peace process in the Southern Mindanao.

Engr. Silongan also made highlights of the Values Transformation Training (VTT) as one of the best practices of BDA in implementing projects including the CD-CAAM Project.

“In Values Transformation Training, we inculcate to the mind of the beneficiaries that everybody has the responsibility to protect what God has provided us including the environment and all the resources in the earth. We are accountable for our own actions as we adhere to be a vicegerent of God in protecting His land,” Engr. Silongan shared.

VTT is one of the regular programs of BDA integrated as key component for all its projects. It is conducted during the social preparation phase of every project.

The two-day workshop gathered different organizations funded by the Japan International Cooperative Agency (JICA) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) from different countries. Purpose of the activity is for the participating organizations to share the different approach and collective actions in development by all stakeholders bringing innovative changes in their conflict-affected states.

Each organization presented their projects implemented with JICA and UNDP including case studies. The objective is to exchange knowledge and insights on capacity-building of local governments in crisis and fragile contexts where they can gain knowledge on their lessons learnt and best practices.

Part also of this international event is a special session on effective approach for institutional reform in conflict affected states where participants were grouped into different topics. The session’s output is a theoretical framework for each topic that each organization can adopt for project implementation.

JICA and UNDP also presented their mechanism different approach in supporting local governance which targets mainly in basic service delivery to the conflict-affected people, institutional development, policy development and equitable and other non-discriminating services.

BDA had been in partnership with JICA for years already on various projects. At present, BDA is implementing CD-CAAM Project in partnership with JICA and ICNet Limited.

The project is piloted in Sultan Mastura, Maguindanao and in Matungao, Lanao del Norte.