Framework for Inclusive Agribusiness Practices for Livelihood and Sustainable Peace in Conflict-affected Mindanao

Abstract

The Proposed Framework for Inclusive Agribusiness Practices for Livelihood and Sustainable Peace in Conflict affected Mindanao presents strategies for agribusiness and approaches to restoring the forests and watersheds that were initiated in the Province of Bukidnon in Northern Mindanao which deserve merit for replication in the Bangsamoro. This study aimed to conceptualize and document a holistic and collaborative approach taken to develop a model for an inclusive and sustainable business practice that can ensure food security and support the livelihoods of the Indigenous People of Bukidnon, many of whom are smallholder farmers while augmenting environmental resilience. The methodology applied for developing the model in Bukidnon utilized various strategies namely, social preparation, community organizing, participatory community development planning, and training, as well as study tours and cross-learning programs for farmers from the Bangsamoro to model sites in Bukidnon. The results of these strategies demonstrated that the key components of the framework, namely securing the availability of food (i.e., adequate and nutritious food on the table), livelihood opportunities (i.e., through the production of cash crops for sale to generate sustainable disposable income), and reforestation of degraded forests and watersheds (i.e., maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem and adequacy of water supply) can be pursued effectively through a more participatory and equitable partnership between corporations and communities. This paper emphasizes that the creation of food security and livelihood opportunities, alongside inclusive community development planning and the promotion of values formation, is urgent given the pressing need for the newly established Bangsamoro Government to deliver dividends of peace through more equitable partnerships. Based on the promising outcomes and results in Bukidnon, it is believed that the replication of the framework in the Bangsamoro can lead to more inclusive and sustainable agribusiness models to help bring economic equity and social justice and enhance environmental sustainability in the Bangsamoro. The study recommends that the Bangsamoro Government give special consideration to the promotion of the framework in the Bangsamoro.