The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao will receive P63.3-billion block grant for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao under the P4.1-billion proposed national government budget for 2020.
Based on the Palace’s proposed measure, the amount is part of the P70.6 billion that the government has allocated to ensure a smooth transition from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to the BARMM based on Republic Act 11054 or the Bangsamoro Organic Law.
“Indeed, Mindanao is no longer the Land of the Promise. It’s now the Land of Fulfillment! The ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law is a testament to this. The Bangsamoro plebiscite is definitely the voice of the people of Mindanao wanting real, genuine change. And we shall not fail them,” President Rodrigo Duterte said in his budget message to Congress.
Of the P70.6-billion budget, P63.6 billion goes to the annual block grant, while P5 billion is for the Special Development Fund.
Also provided within the BARMM budget is the P17.7 billion for the infrastructure development of the region formerly headed by Basilan Rep. Mujiv Hataman, former ARMM governor.
The BARMM got P30-billion budget allocation under this year’s P3.7 trillion national budget.
The BOL serves as the enabling law for the 2014 Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro signed between the Aquino administration and the secessionist group Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
The BOL was overwhelmingly ratified by the Bangsamoro people during a two-part plebiscite early this year.
The BOL, previously known as the Bangsamoro Basic Law, is considered as one of Duterte’s biggest legislative achievements which will give the Moro people basic legal tools to chart their own destiny within the country’s constitutional framework.
The BOL provides revenue sources for the Bangsamoro include taxes, fees, charges and annual block grant, and revenue shares from exploration of natural resources, among others.
