MARAWI CITY—The Bangsamoro Government, through the Bangsamoro Youth Commission (BYC), commended various youth initiatives on environmental protection during its 4th State of the Bangsamoro Youth Address (SOBYA), August 12.
SOBYA is an annual event of the BYC wherein its chairperson presents the status of the Bangsamoro youth, as well as the Commission’s accomplishments. The ceremony also forms part of the regional celebration of International Youth Day.
BYC chairperson Marjanie Macasalong said that during the Bangsamoro Youth Parliament (BYP) in 2021 and 2022, the youth as partners in advocating for change in the region have exemplified commendable ideas.
"An especially notable bill among these is the one introduced by Jomar Macarapen, focusing on the creation and establishment of the Bangsamoro Climate Change Commission," Macasalong said.
The BYP is a Parliament simulation activity that gathers 80 selected youth across the region to discuss their proposed bills and resolutions, aiming to address the concerns of their communities and BARMM in general. This platform provided an avenue for the Bangsamoro youth to experience crafting and passing bills and resolutions for their benefit.
Macasalong said Macarapen's initiative resonates deeply with the clarion call for environmentally-centered engagement during this year's IYD celebration with the theme "Green Skills for Youth: Towards a Sustainable Word."
Chief Minister Ahod Ebrahim, in his message delivered by Member of the Parliament (MP) Atty. Mary Ann Arnado said that this year's theme is timely in the 21st century as the world is facing climate change which he emphasized as the biggest problem of today's generation.
"I am attuned to the fact that ministries and other line agencies, such as the Bangsamoro Youth Commission, are exerting all of their efforts to provide information and a platform on how we can live an environmentally conscious society," the message said.
It also said that these are all stipulated in the 12-point priority agenda of the Bangsamoro Government, which does not only invest in sustaining the gains of the peace process but also in building a society that is disaster-resilient and adaptive to the ever-changing climate.
Meanwhile, the BYC also awarded a seed grant to selected winners of the 2023 Ideation Impact Challenge (IIC), which focused on policy-research proposals mainstreaming Bangsamoro young women.
Each of the winning research teams received a P200,000 seed grant to be used to conduct their studies with the guidance of technical experts from the University of Southern Mindanao. (BIO/PIA-10 Lanao del Sur)
