Oxfam Pilipinas is grateful to the Bangsamoro Women Commission led by its Chairperson Hadja Bainon G. Karon for consistently engaging and involving us, other Non-Government Organizations and Civil Society Organizations in the consultations and crafting of the 3rd BARMM Regional Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security (RAPWPS) 2023-2028. This shows Your commitment to the active and full participation of women and girls, youth groups and CSOs in the development of policies and plans that impact their lives and aspirations.
By opening the space to consult and engage CSOs, WROs, women and youth, and multi-stakeholder groups in crafting the BARMM RAPWPS, you have also provided a platform for them to collectively bring in their issues, context and aspirations on their participation and empowerment, promotion of leadership, and protection and prevention from all forms of violence in the arena of peace, security, and social healing.
Oxfam also congratulates the BARMM Government for its commitment to pursuing women, peace and security agenda in the Region as shown by its support to the crafting of the BARMM RAPWPS, and its launch today.
Since 1998, Oxfam has been working with our partners in BARMM using the humanitarian-conflict transformation-development nexus. Since 2018, Oxfam, CSO partners (UnYPhil-Women, Al Mujaadila Women’s Association, and WE Act 1325) and community women organizations through the support of our funding partner, the Australian Government have been collaborating and working together to contribute to and support the successful transition to an inclusive, and gender-responsive Bangsamoro. Specifically, we have continuously worked in advocating for the promotion and integration of the Bangsamoro Women’s agenda in pertinent Bangsamoro legislations such as the BARMM Gender and Development Code, Bangsamoro Local Governance Code, the BARMM Electoral Code, and the BARMM Regional Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security. We hope to sustain the initiatives we have started including our continued support to the implementation and monitoring of the BARMM RAPWPS.
Today’s launching of the RAPWPS is a declaration that we are all committed to the advancement and promotion of women, peace, and security agenda in the Region. While we celebrate this important day, we all should continue and strengthen our efforts to ensure a coordinated multi-stakeholder approach in the implementation and monitoring of the RAPWPS, including challenging norms that prevent women’s participation and leadership in peace and security spaces and decision-making processes, harmful norms that perpetuate violence against women and girls in times of armed conflict. Pursuing a women, peace and security agenda requires work across all sectors at all levels. Oxfam Pilipinas together with our partners will continue to collaborate and engage with concerned BARMM Government Agencies and other key stakeholders to contribute to the advancement of Women Peace and Security in the region. Oxfam’s work on transformative women leadership, women economic empowerment, prevention of gender-based violence, and local humanitarian action will contribute to the RAPWPS pillars of Protection and Prevention, Empowerment and Participation, and Monitoring and Evaluation through our women-led social accountability initiatives.
