The European Union (EU) has given P312 million to boost the livelihood recovery of 50,000 families or 300,000 people displaced by conflict in Mindanao.

The grant was given to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP).

EU Ambassador to the Philippines Guy Ledoux said that the grant will help ease poverty in the south, while the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are preparing for implementation of a framework agreement establishing a new autonomous entity to be called Bangsamoro region.

“As a major development partner in poverty alleviation in Mindanao since 1990, this grant is a strong re-affirmation of the European Union’s support to the development of Mindanao, and this will no doubt continue in the light of the recent peace framework agreement,” the envoy said.

A signing ceremony between the EU and the WFP for the acceptance of the grant was held on Monday at the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). The signing was witnessed by Social Welfare Sec. Corazon “Dinky” Soliman and Mohagher Iqbal, chairman of the MILF negotiation panel.

“We are very grateful to the EU for their continuous assistance to WFP and its work in the Philippines. As we know, the EU has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for advancing peace in Europe. In part, the EU in the Philippines is proactively promoting the Mindanao peace process through this significant and timely EU grant, which will enable WFP to help conflict-affected communities quickly recover and rebuild,” Stephen Anderson, WFP Philippines representative and country director, said in a statement.

The EU-WFP partnership grant was sourced from the Aid to Uprooted People Program. It will be implemented for two years.

“Through this initiative, small scale granaries as well as food- and cash-for-work activities will be implemented for agricultural cooperatives, farmers, and fishermen, and provide them with production, post-harvest and value-chain support,” the statement said.

It added that projects such as watershed management, reforestation and agro-forestry will be promoted in the interior uplands “to ensure a better living environment for the internally displaced persons.”

The EU said that mangrove replantation, biodiversity restoration and conservation will be
strengthened in the region’s coastal communities.

The WFP will lead the program implementation in close collaboration with the DSWD, Departments of Agriculture, Agrarian Reform and Environment and Natural Resources.

Soliman welcomed the partnership and said that it will boost and complement the government’s efforts to achieve sustainable peace and development in Mindanao.
Iqbal said that the MILF was also encouraged by the grant.

“This assistance will facilitate the work ahead, as we move towards achieving peace and development for the Bangsamoro,” Iqbal said.

“The MILF greatly appreciates the help EU has extended to promote peace in Mindanao, and to improve the living conditions of the people, especially the internally displaced persons,” he added.

The EU grant comes on top of the P462-million grant announced by Ledoux in July 2012. It was to support the peace process and finance the humanitarian, rehabilitation and development component of the International Monitoring Team, where EU is one of the major stakeholders.