ARMM to double funding for Marawi next year

ZAMBOANGA CITY – The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) will more than double its assistance to Marawi City to R930 million in 2018 from P450 million this year.

ARMM Governor Mujiv Hataman during his state of the region speech on Monday, November 20 expressed hope that Marawi City will rise from current challenges as rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts in the city begin.

Hataman said lessons learned from the crisis will lead to new opportunities. “Ayon sa banal na Qu’ran, Fa inna ma’al ‘usri yusra, ang anumang pagsubok ay laging may kaakibat na ginhawa (According to the Qu’ran, whatever trials are always accompanied by comfort),” he said.

He cited the 2015 Mamasapano incident, which was followed by development initiatives and new opportunities for the town’s residents and those in nearby areas.

The Marawi crisis, he added, could speed up the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, noting more legislators will hopefully now realize the urgency of such a measure which has received anemic response from many legislators in the past.

The governor, in his speech, also noted socio-economic efforts that have been aggressively pursued in the region these past years.

The ARMM’s Health, Education, Livelihood, Peace and Governance and Synergy, or HELPS, program has extended assistance amounting to R4.3 billion to over 400 barangays since 2014.

The program is geared towards developing peaceful and progressive communities, with each beneficiary barangay receiving R10 million for infrastructure development.

ARMM’s Bangsamoro Regional Inclusive Development for Growth and Empowerment, or BRIDGE, is another initiative which targets poorest barangays as recipients, was launched in 2015. It now covers 119 communities with 5,800 family-beneficiaries. The program covers food and shelter, as well as of electricity and water supply.