COTABATO CITY — Members of the โMap Teamโ coming from the Bangsamoro Planning and Development Authority (BPDA) conducted on June 2, a benchmarking on existing information systems and mapping activities at the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Regional Office XII.
Said activity was led by Leanabai Sakal-Morales and Datu Jahramin O. Sinsuat, head and assistant head of the map team from BPDAโs Information and Knowledge Management Division (IKMD). Morales underscored that benchmarking is more likely an assessment of the current status of the BPDAโs Map Team comparing it to a more established map team of NEDA XII.
โThrough this, we can come up with our own road map and process flows to easily kick off with our operations to assist the spatial aspect needs of BPDA’s planning documents,โ she said.
As the newest milestone in the partnership between NEDA XII and the BPDA, said activity aimed to provide insights to BPDAโs Map Team on how they will improve their work processes and produce maps required for the formulation of their own physical framework plans.
In addition, the creation of a map team is considered an essential step in fulfilling their responsibility of assisting the BARMM provinces to prepare their respective Provincial Development and Physical Framework Plan (PDPFP).
Engr. Al Kashmir Y. Ko, head of the Local Planning and Coordination Division (LPCD), underscored that said activity is part of the capability building to prepare and capacitate its staff in performing their tasks and responsibilities on the preparation of maps required in different documents prepared by the BPDA.
โBPDA-BARMM will always find ways to improve and enhance the capacity of its staff across various sectors of planning, investment programming, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation, and as well as in map preparationโ, he stressed.
Members of the map team had the opportunity to have a firsthand exposure and tour at the NEDA XII building that showcased different in-house developed systems, data cabinet, and other Management Information System (MIS) equipment utilized by the NEDAโs Map Team in performing their tasks.
Further, Carmel P. Matabang, Assistant Regional Director of NEDA XII who represented Regional Director Teresita Socorro C. Ramos, expressed that she is elated for the BPDAโs admiration on NEDA XII.
โNEDA XII is privileged to serve as the BPDA-BARMM inspiration and mentor as it gains more in-depth knowledge about planning and GIS operations. The benchmarking activity is the beginning of the harmonious sharing of each otherโs talent, knowledge, and geospatial data towards successful mapping activities/undertakings,โ she said.
EnP Romel Patrick E. Tanghal, Chief of the Policy Formulation and Planning Division of NEDA XII, expressed his gratitude for the sustained engagement of their office with BPDA. He further stressed that members of the map team have shared their knowledge based on the exchange of experiences, learnings, and insights among the map team members and key stakeholders towards seamless geospatial data sharing.
Meanwhile, since 2021, the BPDA is actively engaging with NEDA XII to seek for their technical assistance in planning, investment programming, preparing, and reviewing the provincial physical plans. (BPDA-BARMM)