Recognizing Monitoring and Evaluation as a vital part of project operation, the Bangsamoro Development Plan (BDP) Program of Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) in its initial phase of operations holds a Seminar on Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) for Peace and Development on January 20, 2014 at Al-Nor Hotel, Cotabato City.

The participants are mainly composed of key staff of BDA including some members of the Board of Directors, staff from field of Monitoring and Evaluation (M& E) together with some participants from different civil society organizations (CSOs) and the academe doing the same concentration.

Purpose of the activity is to provide venue where sharing and learning of best practices on monitoring and evaluation is discussed towards the aim of strengthening M&E for peacebuilding and conflict transformation.

Monitoring and Evaluation is very significant for BDP because we want a clear indicators and key results, Engr. Windel Diangcalan said. Through M&E, we will also be able to provide clear outcome as the new entity of the Bangsamoro is approaching.

The key presenters of the seminar are from Mindanao Development Authority (MinDa). They are Reyzaldy Tan and Carlos Cerezo. They presented and shared the M & E tools they used particularly with their experience with The ACT for Peace. MinDa is currently cooperating with BDA for the BDP process.

Accordingly, the tool used is the Peace-Based M&E Framework which evolves on four dimensions such as personal, relational, structural and cultural. Personal refers to changes in one person in all aspects; relational refers to the changes between and among individuals; structural on social, procedural and institutional patterns and; cultural refers to changes as it is shared by a group.

On peacebuilding, the speakers stressed that peacebuilding is a process. “It is a process and it should be nurtured, it is not achieved instantly. The program should be context and it needs constituency. And the changes for peace our stories, the action reflection, the knowledge product, the testimonies of the people you work with in this peacebuilding process”, the speaker said.

Dr. Ayesha Abubakar, BDP Advisory Council Consultant who takes the initiative in organizing the activity explained further that the presentation of the tool is for the BDA M&E people to learn and see the actual experiences of MinDa with The Act for Peace Programme. “We, the MinDA wanted to share with BDA these best practices that will actually and hopefully be very helpful to BDA and to this Bangsamoro Development Plan (BDP),” Dr. Ayesha said.

Dr. Abubakar is the author of the dissertation entitled Sustainable Human Development (SHD) and Peacebuilding for Mindanao that is anchored in the Right to Self-Determination (RSD) context of the Bangsamoro. The BDP is guided by this study which accordingly spouses the BDA core values team that shapes the ethnic unification in building a new culture and mindset of development among the conflict-affected communities, and the whole of the Bangsamoro.

In conclusion of the presentation and discussion, she pointed out important things for BDA. First is for BDA as development arm of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to act also as peacebuilding arm in the Bangsamoro. She also recommended the importance of knowledge management and documentation.

BDA through its BDP program is currently working on the formulation of the Bangsamoro Development Plan that is recognized as vital roadmap that will provide a short and medium-term vision and strategy for the recovery and development of the Bangsamoro.

The program receives support from the World Bank through the Mindanao Trust Fund for Reconstruction and Development Program (MTF-RDP) on September 2103 for its operation and implementation.