ZAMBOANGA CITY – The Bangsamoro Parliament's Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform Committee (CAFAR) conducted the first of a series of public consultations today, focusing on Parliament Bill No. 39, which seeks to establish the Bangsamoro Agriculture and Fisheries Training Institute in the BARMM core areas.
Numerous stakeholders representing various sectors from the island provinces of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi, attended the consultation held in Zamboanga City and presided over by MP Matarul Estino.The participants voiced their opinions, aired their comments, and made recommendations on the bill.
In his opening remarks, MP Estino emphasized that the purpose of the consultation is to develop a comprehensive and effective law that will promote the general welfare of farmers and fisherfolk in the region.
He further highlighted that gathering information from the public would enhance the legislative agenda of the Bangsamoro Parliament and broaden the scope of moral governance.
Under the proposed measure, the BAFTI will establish three satellite offices in the provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, and Tawi-Tawi. These offices will work together with the Technical Education Division of the Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education to create short courses in agriculture and fisheries.
The courses will include intensive training in these fields, as well as related marketing and business topics, to help achieve the goals of the BAFTI Act.
The BAFTI offices will also work with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform and all concerned local government units in the region. They will also be responsible for formulating the regional agriculture and fisheries extension (AFE) agenda and budget.
Committee members highlighted that the BAFTI offices are designed to provide the necessary educational and learning support to Bangsamoro farmers and fisherfolk. These offices will serve as venues for conducting skills and competency training courses and programs. Training courses that emphasize the promotion of halal standards and their benefits will also be developed and utilized.
During the consultation, MAFAR Fisheries Services Director II Macmod Mamalangkas presented the salient features of the bill.
He emphasized the importance of implementing the policy outlined in the bill and the need for proper coordination between the BAFTI offices and MAFAR to fully realize its educational and learning programs.
He also stressed that the Bangsamoro government has a responsibility to prioritize this policy to alleviate poverty in the region through the promotion of the agriculture and fisheries sector.
Syed Bederi from the private sector highlighted the importance of integrating technology into the establishment of BAFTI offices to ensure the efficiency of the proposed measure. According to Bederi, the revenue of the farming and fishing communities would increase dramatically if they used technology to improve data collecting, fund management, transparency, assessment, and evaluation.
Another point of discussion during the consultation was the need to establish BAFTI offices in all provinces of the BARMM, rather than just selected core areas.
Local agriculture and fisherfolk representatives argued that having BAFTI offices in all BARMM provinces would facilitate a more extensive reach and better serve their intended beneficiaries.
Representatives from state colleges and universities raised concerns about the proper identification of beneficiaries for BAFTI training programs.
The growth of the halal industry emerged as a common concern among stakeholders, particularly those representing different cooperatives. They emphasized the importance of concrete policies for halal certification in the food industry, as it would ensure the welfare and protection of Bangsamoro consumers.
The stakeholders proposed the strict enforcement of standards in identifying halal ingredients and called for proper laboratory testing and examination to support the certification process.
MP Estino emphasized that BAFTI is comparable to other training institutes in the country that offer a wide array of training.
Under the current BARMM leadership, the Parliament is empowered to create educational and learning institutes like BAFTI, which aims to provide trainees with three to six months of training programs.
Parliament Bill No. 39, a cabinet proposed measure and considered a priority bill, was introduced by the Government of the day.
The committee will hold another round of public consultation in Lanao del Sur. (LTAIS-Public Information, Publication, and Media Relations Division)
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