The importance of addressing youth issues in the Philippines

The Philippines is an agricultural country with a land area of 30 million hectares, 47% of which is agricultural land. The Agriculture sector in the Philippines contributes about 20 percent to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). However, in the past decades, the Agriculture sector encountered many challenges, particularly the ageing population of farmers in the country. The Department of Agriculture of the Philippines, in an Official Statement(1) has pointed out the declining interest in farming resulting to an aging labor force in the agriculture sector, which may lead to the deterioration of the food security and nutrition (FSN) of the Philippines.

The Philippines is one of the countries committed to attaining the UN Decade of Family Farming’s (UNDFF) goals. Supporting youth is an important transversal pillar of the UNDFF Global Action Plan. Through this initiative, it hopes to contribute to creating policies that strengthen family farming and support the youth to ensure the continuous farming of their families.

The Bangsamoro region and its youth: an overview

Mindanao is the second largest island among the three major islands of the Philippines. Though it is a land blessed with abundant natural resources both on land and in sea, decades of conflicts and civil unrest has impeded the region’s growth and development. The formation of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), established through the Bangsamoro Organic Law, which was ratified through a plebiscite in 2019, is seen as the long-awaited answer to finally attain lasting peace and, consequently, development for the Bangsamoro People. In essence, the BARMM provides the Bangsamoro an avenue for self-determination and autonomy in accordance with its unique cultural and social traditions.

More than half of the youth in the Bangsamoro region belong to poor families(2). In 2018, the Regional Statistical Service Office indicated that some 711 800 BARMM youth belong to families with per capita incomes below the region’s poverty threshold to meet each individual’s food and non-food needs, and with the highest poverty incidence among the youth in the country in 2018 at 58.9 percent(3).

FAO’s support on the FLAG-PH initiative in BARMM: addressing Bangsamoro youth issues

It is against the bleak backdrop of youth poverty, malnutrition, and food insecurity in the Bangsamoro region that FAO, through its Legislative Advisory Group in the Philippines (FLAG-PH) initiative in BARMM, attempts to foster improvement in the overall situation of the Bangsamoro youth. The main objective of the initiative is to provide a platform for youth for the exchange of information, ideas, and opportunities towards more focused legislative and policy measures on youth. It attempts to achieve this through appropriate strengthening participation of youth in the development and implementation of Food Security, Nutrition and Agriculture Legislations, capacity building exercises, knowledge sharing, evidence-based advocacies, grassroots consultations, and strategic communications initiatives. There are important players in the BARMM that are involved in matters pertaining to the Youth such as the Bangsamoro Youth Commission, Sangguniang Kabataan and various youth groups. Mostly, they are engaged in Pace and Order, transitional justice efforts, but are now starting to address relevant matters related to Youth participation in Food Security measures with the finalization of the Bangsamoro Food Security Roadmap, jointly undertaken by MAFAR, FAO and WFP. Efforts in the national parliament similar to the Young farmer’s challenge program can now dovetail with BARMM regional agenda on youth participation for Food Security.

Consultation on BARMM legislations related to Bangsamoro youth and food security

A consultation meeting was undertaken through an interview with a Member of the Parliament, Atty. Laisa Alahud Alamia(4). MP Alamia possessed the unique familiarity of laws that were passed in both regional governments hence her input is considered vital to the study. The consultation meeting revealed that there are presently no laws that are specific to the youth and their participation in food security measures for the region. In response to the situation, FAO’s continuous support aims at drafting and advocating of a regulation/bill/law to support and promote youth participation in agriculture, youth investments in the rural economy and ensure generational sustainability in family farming.

Working with the Bangsamoro Youth Commission and other youth groups in BARMM

The Bangsamoro Youth Commission (BYC), established on 14 April 2020 under the Bangsamoro Autonomy Act No. 10, is the official policymaking and coordinating unit for youth-related institutions, programs and projects of the BARMM regional government.

The Bangsamoro Youth Transition Priority Agenda (BYTPA) 2020-2022 is a BYC initiative and the Bangsamoro’s youth development agenda “that addresses the peculiar social context, consideration and conditions as well as the pertinent needs and challenges confronting the Bangsamoro Youth” and focuses on five major agenda centers: Health, Governance, Peacebuilding and Security, Education, and Active Citizenship. Considering these agenda centers, part of the FLAG BARMM’s undertaking is to steer the Bangsamoro Youth’s direction towards convergence in more active participation in farming, agriculture, and matters that relate to Food Security.

Considering BYC’s strategic position to address youth-related issues in the region, the FLAG-PH team engaged with the commission for the creation and implementation of the FLAG-Youth initiative. This partnership is envisioned to pave the way for numerous collaborative opportunities between BYC and FLAG-Youth that will encourage Bangsamoro youth to actively take part in agriculture and food security initiatives in the region.

Additionally, FLAG-PH held a number of consultations with various BARMM youth groups to help the team understand the perceptions and attitudes of youth regarding agriculture as well as identify the prevailing challenges of youth in the sector, with the vision to support the youth address these challenges through policy reforms and legislations. Through these consultations, the FLAG-PH team learned that most Bangsamoro youth would rather have office jobs (white collar jobs) or go abroad instead of engaging in agriculture because they perceive the sector to be a dead-end and non-viable economic opportunity.

However, the team also learned that the same youth groups see hope in agriculture if certain interventions could be given robust support such as provision of agricultural scholarships and apprenticeship programs, use of new technologies, digital transformation, and appropriate information and communication technology interventions, among others. Many of the young people interviewed by the team believe that such interventions could re-energize Philippine agriculture and entice them to be actively involved in the sector. The results of the consultations confirm the necessity and importance of capacity building exercises and knowledge sharing among youth in the region.

Validating the role of the youth in attaining food security in the Bangsamoro through a webinar

On 4 December 2020, through the project FLAG-BARMM, FAO Philippines together with BYC and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR) of BARMM, conducted a webinar entitled “The Bangsamoro Youth at the Helm in the Region’s Food Security Development and Progress”.

The online forum was attended by Dr Marjanie Macasalong, a Member of Parliament (MP) and representing the BYC in his capacity as Chairperson, as well as by representatives from MAFAR and other invited speakers who talked about their experience as advocates of food security among the youth. The speakers were of diversed background which included a lawyer, Atty. Angelo Q. Valencia, who spoke about his advocacies and projects for the indigenous peoples of the country as a social entrepreneur under Tibby’s Farm and Klasrums ng Pag-asa (Classrooms of Hope); Mr Benhar Agga, a teacher by profession and also a young farmer who detailed how he established and overcame challenges with the Panghalaman Farmer’s Youth Group in BARMM’s island provinces; Mr Arthur Saulong, a student-entrepreneur and founding partner of SMP & Co Partners Inc., who spoke about digital technology to advance innovations in the value chain management in agriculture; and Congressman Alfred Vargas, co-author of the “Young Farmers’ Challenge Program”, who, through a video message, talked about his legislative proposals to champion youth-in-agriculture initiatives. Resource speakers from MAFAR and the national government’s Department of Agriculture also discussed the current programs of the government that could benefit young farmers and youth intending to get into agriculture. The recording of the webinar livestream could be viewed here: https://fb.watch/4a3IOyEJ7m/.

Main upcoming activities in 2021

For 2021, the initiative will look towards more active participation in parliamentary efforts to enact legislation that can respond to the need for more active participation of the Bangsamoro Youth in agriculture. The introduction of a BARMM regional regulations bill related to Food Security to the BTA is expected. This will entail more consultations on the grassroots level that will cover in school and out of school youth, those engaged in formal farming institutions as well as informal set ups, small-scale processors and retailers, agri-enterpreneurs.

In the process of consultations with parliamentarians and the youth, the requirement for a more encouraging environment for the youth was highlighted. An appropriate strategic communications plan is needed to make the youth consider farming as an economically viable alternative profession. In cooperation with FAO communications group, such a plan will be crafted, that will use modern, digital innovations that will make the Bangsamoro Youth more aware of the requirements of farming and its relationship to Food Security.

More knowledge sharing activities such as webinars, pamphlets, and digital communications materials will be shared on specific topics that will help enhance youth agricultural competencies through technology transfer and evidenced based advocacies.

Look ahead and the effort continuous in 2021

Amidst a covid19 pandemic that now continues unabated and seriously threatens food systems, efforts dedicated to the youth are made even more important. By enhancing capacity, we can make agriculture more robust, the value chain more resilient to address the challenges brought about by the pandemic. While, futures are uncertain, risks can be mitigated through appropriate preparation and capacity building. The Bangsamoro Youth should now be more active participants in Food Security measures. This is the way to securing the future of Food Security in the BARMM region of the Philippines.

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1 Cited in ABS-CBN report dated July 10, 2018, delivered by the Undersecretary Ranibai Dilangalen in Congress

2 Official report by HJI Razulden A. Mangelen, MPA, MDM, Chief Statistical Specialist, Regional Statistical Service Office (RSSO) of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

3 2018 Full-Year Poverty Statistics among youth in the BARMM. PSA-BARMM, June 11, 2020, ref no. SR-BARMM-20-061 retrieved from https:// rssoarmm.psa.gov.ph/release/new-article/55530

4 The present minority leader of the BTA Parliament who also served as Executive Secretary of the defunct ARMM