COTABATO CITY – The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform celebrated its pioneering collaboration with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ), the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA), and Pambansang Kilusan ng mga Samahang Magsasaka (PAKISAMA) through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at Villa Miranda.
On February 22, the event marks a significant milestone in the ongoing partnership, aiming to transform agriculture and enhance peace in Mindanao, especially the Bangsamoro region.
Led by Minister Mohammad S. Yacob, Ph.D., key figures, including Peter Hinn, GIZ-SPADe Project Director, Julhaina Cadon, Deputy Executive Director of BDA, and Randy R. Cirio, PAKISAMA President, were present.
Minister Yacob expressed his gratitude to the representatives of governments and agencies, especially GIZ, BDA, and PAKISAMA, for witnessing the remarkable event that manifest the BARMM commitment to implementing economic development programs for the entire region.
He also recognized the contribution of farmers, fisherfolk, and agrarian reform beneficiaries to its development.
“By the advice and guidance of Chief Minister Ahod Ibrahim to make the BARMM ministries and agencies continue supporting whatever makes the entire region sustainable,” he said.
“We believe that we face overwhelming challenges in having low data for agriculture and fishery industries, and we recognize those challenges. From there, MAFAR has been maximizing our efforts to serve strategic approaches to increase productivity in agriculture and fisheries industries,” he added.
Meanwhile, Peter Hinn also expressed gratitude for having the MAFAR minister, especially since agriculture is his expertise. He reiterated how grateful he was to be with the Minister of MAFAR, who emphasizes the importance of agriculture.
He said that enhancing peace is part of developing the agriculture industry; if we develop the agriculture industry, we could also address other concerns.
The ongoing collaborative projects include implementing the Integrated Diversified Organic Family Farming System-Value Chain Development in BARMM (IDOFFS- BARMM) Project by PAKISAMA.
“Sa amin po sa PAKISAMA, ang layunin namin ay magpatupad ng mga programa, katulad ng ating pinagsasamahang ngayon. Ang layunin po namin ay ibaba sa mga komunidad ang programa, lalong lalo na ang GIZ-SPADe dahil ang aming adbokasiya patungkol sa pagpapalahok ng ekonomiya at pagpapataas ng antas ng kabuhayan sa pamilyang magsasaka ay isa sa aming mga gawain,” Cirio said.
Executive Director Cadon, in her message, said this partnership project with GIZ, MAFAR, and PAKISAMA is a symbolic commitment to all of Bangsamoro, ensuring that no one is left behind.
The Strengthening Implementation of Regional and Local Peace and Development Agendas in Mindanao (SPADe- MinPAD RISE) project, co-funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation (BMZ) in partnership with Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG)
In addition, the innovative collaboration was witnessed by representatives of MSSD, MILG, MBPDA, MTIT, MIPA, MOPOS, MENRE, CSEA, LBO, BBC, MDA, and MAGNETO, symbolizing the commitment to sustained cooperation and innovation for the development of the country.
