August 12, 2024. Palapa is a local kind of side- dish known to the M’ranao (people of the lake in Lanao provinces, South of the Philippines).

This dish is made of herbs (named sakurab) found in the communities of M’ranao, produced into a delightful, spicy and tasty manner with that of organic aroma, which adds to its distinct features.

For the women group in Malimono- a remote and isolated village in Marawi City, there is hope in palapa.

According to the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA), the women group in Malimono is organized in 2022 as part of the project that works to help improve basic- social services for the vulnerable groups in the Bangsamoro communities.

“Through the project SUBATRA-ECSO: Enhancing CSOs Capacities for Inclusive Development Interventions in BARMM in Support to Bangsamoro Transition, funded by the European Union and the Spanish Cooperacion Agency, we assisted them to become a people’s organization (PO) and since then, they underwent various trainings that gradually develop their capacities about organizational management”, BDA reported.

Together with other eighteen POs in the other villages of BARMM, these groups have completed different skills training based on the identified local enterprise for their group, e.g., palapa processing, coconut processing, vegetable production, banana processing, rice processing, others.

In August 2023, these groups showcased their finished products during the Product Expo organized by the project attended by donor partners, officials and representatives from the Bangsamoro Government.

After the Product Expo, significant results were achieved with some of those community groups being able to link with local government offices whose works support local enterprise development.

“The story of Brave Women People’s Organization of Malimono in Marawi City, their progress and gradual success happened later than those other groups who immediately got support after the Product Expo in August 2023”, BDA told.

Jalanesa Amerol, president of the PO shared that it was just early this year when they met with the Word Vision, whose one staff is a friend to a PO member.

World Vision (WV) is an international humanitarian aid and development organization who has project works in Marawi City, at present.

“We knew one of their staff who tried our product. So since then, the WV orders from them 7- 20 bottles of palapa every month”, Jalanesa said.

She added that the WV helps them promote their products, taking photos and videos of their produced palapa.

They also have a social media account for online selling of their palapa products, where they get orders from few customers like those from the city hall of Marawi City.

“The income is gradual and still little and from our sales, we buy other additional materials for our processing activities”, Jalanesa told.

The group has recently completed training on organizational management and policy formulation. This training will help strengthen their group by agreeing on policies for their operation and production activities.

“We remain supportive of them and keep pushing them to go on with this livelihood opportunity, explore other marketing options, and continue working together as an organization”, BDA stated.

“Our role is to assist them, not to be spoon- fed but be self- reliant. That is why we train them about self- help, social enterprise, organizational policies, management, marketing, book keeping, and others for the sustainability of their organization”, BDA added.

Further, BDA reported that more trainings are scheduled for these POs like product development in collaboration with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism (MTIT- BARMM).

Livelihood support as one approach to community development and empowerment has been significant in developing the awareness, engagement, capacity and potentials of people at the grassroots level towards inclusive progress and peacebuilding.

While most of the products developed have its raw materials available in the locality, it is not only for economic recovery, but also helps in culture promotion and preservation like the palapa of the M’ranao in the famous Lake Lanao in Bangsamoro Region, South of the Philippines. (BDA Communications, 2024)