The Bangsamoro government has appointed key executive and legislative officials as members of an intergovernmental fiscal policy body, the Department of Finance (DOF) said yesterday.
The DOF said in a statement the body called the Intergovernmental Fiscal Policy Board (IFPB) will also have members from the national government, led by Carlos Dominguez, DOF secretary.
IFPB is mandated to address revenue imbalances and fluctuations in the financial needs and revenue-raising capacity of this new autonomous region. It is co-chaired by Dominguez and Ahod Ebrahim, Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) chief minister.
According to the DOF, the BARMM has also named to the IFPB minister Abu Amri Taddik, minister Naguib Sinarimbo, deputy speaker Hatamil Hassan, Mohajirin Ali, and Said Salendab.
For the national government, the other IFPB members are budget secretary Wendel Avisado, trade secretary Ramon Lopez, and secretary Ernesto Pernia of the National Economic and Development Authority.
In his report during a recent DOF executive committee meeting, Jesus Nathaniel Gonzales of the DOF legal group said the representatives from the national government agreed that for easier coordination, a focal person should be appointed for each of the government agencies that are members of the IFPB.
“Last January 7, we met with the other members from the national government, and we discussed the draft terms of reference of the board and the secretariat which we just patterned after the IGRB (National Government-Bangsamoro Government Intergovernmental Relations Body). And the national government representatives also agreed that each of the agencies shall appoint a focal person, so it’s easier to coordinate,” Gonzales said during the meeting,
Bayani Agabin, DOF undersecretary, said the first organizational meeting of the IFPB is scheduled in the third week of March.
Last December, the IGRB held its inaugural meeting in Davao City.
This body is mandated to coordinate and resolve issues on intergovernmental relations between the national government and the BARMM through regular consultations and continuing negotiations in a non-adversarial manner.
Dominguez said the IGRB is a “major step forward” in realizing a substantial and functional autonomy for the new autonomous Muslim region.
He expressed the hope that the new Bangsamoro autonomous region will “light up the pathway for rapid development” for the people of Mindanao, especially those from communities once torn by conflict.
