BAGUIO CITY – The Cordillera Regional Development Council thru a resolution created the Regional BalikProbinsya, BagongPagasa (BP2) Support Committee with Agriculture Secretary William Dar, the Cabinet Officer for Regional Development and Security (CORDS) for the Cordillera, as chairperson.
The BP2 support committee functions as the regional counterpart of the national BP2 Council which implements Executive Order No. 114 “Institutionalizing The BalikProbinsya, BagongPag-Asa Program as A Pillar of Balanced Regional Development, Creating A Council Therefor, and for Other Purposes”.
The BP2 implements the long-proposed decentralization of wealth, resources and opportunities from the National Capital Region and other congested metropolitan areas to the other, less dense, and less concentrated areas of the country. Its implementation was fast-tracked and changed due to the Covid-19 pandemic which exposed the vulnerability of congested, high-density metropolises to disease outbreaks and pandemics.
The BP2 Committee will formulate an action plan with the participation of both government and non-government organizations. The committee will also provide guidance to the local government units(LGUs) and promote market investment in the region.
Key areas of focus are the empowerment of local industries, food security, agricultural productivity, social welfare, health, employment, human resources development, and infrastructure development.
NEDA-CAR Regional Director and RDC Vice-Chair Milagros Rimando emphasized that this program is in line with the Cordillera Regional Development Plan as well as the Philippine Development Plan.
DTI Regional Director and RDC Economic Development Committee Chair Myrna Pablo noted that agencies must ensure proper allocation in their respective budgets to prepare for the provision of services to these returning citizens.
DILG Regional Director MarloIringan also emphasized that LGU chief executives must be active members of the committee as they are at the forefront of handling the localized BP2 program.
RDC Chair and Abra Governor Joy Bernos stressed that the LGUs as well as the private sector will bear the impact of BP2.
Meanwhile, Benguet League of Municipalities President and Itogon Mayor VictorioPalangdansaid the region must implement its own measures. Economic centers like Baguio City and Itogon, among others in the Cordillera, host people who come from other provinces with the intention of finding better working opportunities. He cited the small scale miners of Itogon from Ifugao, Kalinga, and other places who have been stranded and unable to go home due to the pandemic.**Marlo Lubguban- NEDA-SPCAR
