BRUSSELS 22 February 2024 -- A delegation of five (5) Members of Parliament (MP) of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) headed by MP Jaafar Apollo Mikhail L. Matalam, MP Baintan Adil-Ampatuan, MP Khalid Hadji Abdulla, MP Rasul E. Ismael, MP Sittie Fahanie Sindatok Uy, Mr. Khomeini Gayak Oyod, Director, Irrigation with Ms. Cherrie Atilano and Ms. Sonia Gonzales of AGREA Foundation and joined also by Mr. Dionisio Santos, Jr. of ConGen Mgt Pte Ltd., who visited Brussels on 22 February 2024.

The MPs called on Ambassador Jaime Victor B. Ledda, and met with the European Commission’s Directorate General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA), Mr. Mario Ronconi, Head of Unit of the South and Southeast Asia. The delegation expressed appreciation to the EU for the recently launched Bangsamoro Agri-Enterprise Program and for other EU programs specifically aimed to support the development of the BARMM under the Philippines-EU Partnership and Cooperation Agreement.

This is the first ever visit of a delegation of BARMM MPs to Brussels and to the European Commision.

The study mission’s objective is for the MPs to learn the fundamentals of sustainable agriculture, agribusiness opportunities, agritech and water management technologies which will better guide them to develop sound policies in BARMM. It was organized by AGREA Foundation in cooperation with ProFound Advisers in Development, the Embassy of the Netherlands in Manila and PH Agriculture Attaché Kristine Jeanne A. Yap.