COTABATO CITY — The Regional Statistics Committee (RSCom) under the Bangsamoro Economic and Development Council (BEDC) successfully conducted Monday, December 7, 2020, its second regular meeting held at Bangsamoro Planning and Development Authority (BPDA) Conference Hall, Bangsamoro Government Center, this city.
The meeting highlighted the proposed amendment of Resolution No. 1: Adopting the House Rules of the RSCom of the BEDC, designation of permanent and alternate representatives, and creation of RSCom website.
Mahmur Sarail, PSA-BARMM Chief Statistical Specialist, presented the summary of the 2019 Report on the Economic Performance of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and its GRDP/GRDE.
Engr. Mohajirin T. Ali, Bangsamoro Director General and committee chair, emphasized the importance of cooperation among the ministries, offices and agencies of the BARMM in submitting their administrative data.
“I encourage everyone to share vital information to PSA because it will serve as their guide and basis in assessing various indicators that we will eventually need in measuring the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) to poverty incidence and other indicators that usually serve as our guide in planning,” Ali said.
The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region has remained to be on top despite its low GRDP compared to year 2017 and 2018.
“The BARMM GRDP still gained second among the regions in Mindanao and seventh nationally. Also, the GRDP for 2020 is a challenge because of the pandemic,” Ali added.
Engr. Naser S. Usman, PSA BARMM OIC Regional Director and committee co-chair, said the RSCom members should work hard together to achieve their objectives and to provide the statistical needs of the BARMM.
“We will be working closely together as we collect more data from your offices. We have to work for the creation of the regional social economic trends and the regional statistical development plan for the region’s annual economic performance, both for gross domestic product and gross domestic expenditures, and many more,” Usman said.
Meanwhile, the 2021 Regional Statistics Committee Policy Agenda, creation of RSCom corner, and setting the date and venue of the next committee meeting were also discussed during the meeting. Also present were representatives from the Ministry of Labor and Employment (MOLE), Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources and Energy (MENRE), Ministry of Trade, Investment and Tourism (MTIT), Ministry of Public Works and Highway (MPW), Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR), Technical Management Services – Office of the Chief Minister (TMS-OCM), BARMM Treasury Office (BTO), Bangsamoro Commission for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage (BCPCH), and BPDA as the head secretariat. (Lovella Lao-Lastimosa, IKMD, BPDA-BARMM)