The Ministry of Human Settlements and Development (MHSD) awards a total of 50 housing units with land development improvement to qualified Bangsamoro families in Brgy. Nabalawag, Barira, Maguindanao del Norte, on October 10, 2024. (Photo courtesy of MHSD)
COTABATO CITY—Beneficiaries of 50 housing units with land development improvement situated in Barangay Nabalawag in Barira, Maguindanao del Norte, expressed their appreciation during the awarding ceremony on Oct. 10, 2024.
Hassana Balitoc, one of the beneficiaries, stated that the housing project aided the socio-economic situation of the recipients, mentioning that shelter is no longer a ‘worry’ now.
“Indeed, when I said to my fellow beneficiary that he could already occupy his housing unit, he got emotional and said that if it weren’t for the Bangsamoro Government, he would never experience having his own house in his lifetime,” she emphasized during the awarding ceremony held at the MHSD Office.
The units were funded under the General Appropriations Act of the Bangsamoro (GAAB) 2021 and materialized through the Ministry of Human Settlements and Development’s (MHSD) Resettlement Housing Program.
The program aims to provide costless housing units with water systems, solar lights, access roads, and support services for resettlement, which may include livelihood services from partner agencies.
Among the intervention’s target beneficiaries are former Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) combatants, the poorest of the poor, victims of calamity or conflict, indigenous people, and internally displaced persons (IDPs) who are identified and selected with the help of other partners such as local government units (LGUs).
Fruits of the peace agreements
MHSD Minister Atty. Hamid Aminoddin Barra stressed that the ongoing and continual housing programs of the interim government, through the Ministry, are the products of the decades-long armed struggle in the Bangsamoro region, which resulted in the signing of the peace accords, eventually leading to the enactment of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).
Under Section 9 Article IX of the BOL, the Bangsamoro Government is mandated to address the lack of shelters, settlements, and livelihood for the disadvantaged and homeless, especially those victims of conflicts and atrocities.
Minister Barra added that while the regional government continues constructing shelter infrastructure, the beneficiaries are urged to transform the houses into “homes.”
“We are not just literally speaking about ‘infrastructure’ here. What we look forward to is for you to have a bountiful family and not use these units for illegal activities because the support you are receiving was sourced from good and lawful means,” the Minister highlighted.
He further encouraged the recipients to preserve the gains of the Bangsamoro peace process.
Ways forward
MHSD Director-General Esmael Ebrahim shared that the Ministry eyes additional 100 housing units, another 150 from the National Housing Authority (NHA), and 100 units for each of the six (6) previously acknowledged major camps, among others.
The turnover and awarding activities are in accordance with the month-long celebration of National Shelter Month, vested under Proclamation No. 662, s. 1995, signed by former president Fidel Ramos.
Likewise, developing a system of reliable and resilient infrastructure to spur economic growth in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is the fifth priority agenda of Bangsamoro Chief Minister Ahod Ebrahim. (Johamin Inok/BIO)
