Young leaders across the Bangsamoro region convene at the Shariff Kabunsuan Cultural Complex, Bangsamoro Government Center in Cotabato City to inaugurate the 3rd Bangsamoro Youth Parliament (BYP) 2024 on August 6, 2024. (Faisal Camsa Jr./BIO)
COTABATO CITY—Eighty young parliamentarians from various provinces and sectors across the BARMM, including communities outside the region, joined the opening of the 3rd Bangsamoro Youth Parliament (BYP) 2024 on Tuesday at the Shariff Kabunsuan Cultural Complex, Bangsamoro Government Center in this city.
Organized by the Bangsamoro Youth Commission (BYC), the four-day event, concluding on Aug. 10, is themed “Advancing Bangsamoro Youth Causes: Propelling Moral Governance Through Shaping Policy for 2025 and Beyond”, which aims to create a safe and inclusive space where youth can freely express their perspectives and insights on issues directly affecting them and their communities.
Member of the Parliament and BYC Chairperson Marjanie Macasalong highlighted the importance of the BYP in promoting inclusivity and collaborative problem-solving.
“Your generation is not only capable of leading change but also driven to make a meaningful difference. You, our distinguished youth members of the parliament, are filled with the promise and potential to shape the future of our beloved Bangsamoro region and our nation,” he said.
Macasalong also committed to ensuring that the youth’s ideas and proposals will be translated into reality.
Mindanao Field Office Head Andreas Wuestenberg emphasized UNICEF’s dedication to helping the youth, the Bangsamoro Government, and the Youth Commission to engage young people in driving social change, empowering them, and building a brighter future.
“BYP is such an important venue where you can express your ideas, you can debate, sometimes you can argue and then you compromise,” said Wuestenberg.
“But it is also your venue to learn how politics work because that is what it means for you to become leaders in the future,” he added.
Professor Rufa Guiam, an expert on Public Administration Reform of Support to the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (SUBATRA), challenged the youth to contribute to a peaceful and meaningful Bangsamoro region.
“You are the key to a brighter future for Bangsamoro,” said Prof. Guiam. “I hope to see you in the future waving your flag as a Bangsamoro in a peaceful, brighter, and more livable region that will love the Bangsamoro region.”
Several dignitaries from development partners, Bangsamoro ministries, offices, and agencies, the Bangsamoro Parliament and cabinet, local government units, and BYP alumni attended the opening ceremony.
The inaugural BYP was held in 2021, with its second edition in 2022, reflecting BYC’s commitment to fostering youth leadership and shaping the future of the Bangsamoro region through active engagement and policy development.
This 3rd BYP is conducted with the assistance of the Support to Bangsamoro Transition (SUBATRA) Project, funded by the European Union (EU), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
The BYP provides a platform for these youth leaders to develop skills, discuss and produce tangible policies addressing critical issues, participate in governance and policymaking, and simulate legislative processes in the parliament. (Kasan Usop, Jr./BIO)
