Youth groups receive cash for peace-building programs in Mindanao

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo awarded here Thursday 10 youth groups P25,000 cash each in support of their peace-bulding programs addressing violent religious extremism.

The selection of the 10 organizations, from among 28, was premised on extensive assessments initiated during a prior Angat Buhay Summit facilitated jointly by the Office of the Vice President and the executive department of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

In a statement, the Bureau of Public Information-ARMM said it was the United States embassy that provided for the cash awards Robredo released to the 10 peace-advocacy groups.

The US Embassy is a key benefactor of the Angat Buhay program of Robredo’s office.

The office of ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman augmented the monetary grants with additional P25,000 cash for each of the 10 youth groups.

The counterpart support from the ARMM government was to complement the expansion of their peace-building projects in the five provinces of the autonomous region --- Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

The Hataman administration is a staunch supporter of the efforts of the national government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to put a negotiated closure to the now five-decade secessionist conflict in the country’s south.

In a message, Robredo said it is important to capacitate and empower the region’s youth sector to become efficient in governance and in propagating harmony among southerners.

The youth summit preceding Thursday’s engagement here of Robredo was organized jointly by her office, theYoung Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, the United Voices for Peace Network Inc., the ARMM Development Academy and the regional government’s Office on Bangsamoro Youth Affairs.

Robredo lauded the ARMM leadership for is continuing effort to involve the region’s youth sector in governance and in fostering peace and development in the autonomous region.

The four-day youth summit here was aimed at generating ideas on comprehensive and inclusive community-based peace-building initiatives among participants.

The Angat Buhay program of Robredo’s office is focused on providing local sectors, including the nation’s youth, ample opportunities to engage in collaborative community development initiatives needed to address issues besetting Filipino communities.

While in Cotabato City, Robredo toured the ARMM government’s model ethnic villages depicting the cultural pluralism among the southern Maguindanaon, Maranaw, Iranun, Teduray, Yakan, Tausug and Samah communities.

The mock villages were established by Hataman’s office to maximize efforts of educating the public on the cultural diversities and community norms of Southern Muslim and non-Muslim indigenous communities.