The projectbuilds on a previous EU-financed project which focused on party-building in the Bangsamoro entity and the recently concluded project Democratic Leadership and Civil Society Empowerment (DELACSE Bangsamoro). The project aims to up-scale the activities and programs that had been started under these two projects, particularly those that will contribute to the peaceful transition and democratic functioning of the new autonomous Bangsamoro political entity. This project stemmed from the strong demand from civil society organizations and political groups for sustained political and civic education in Bangsamoro in order to instil critical thinking and develop the skills of civil society to adeptly participate in democratic processes.The Bangsamoro constituency needs to be informed about the unfolding political changes in the region so that they can objectively make informed decisions on every issues and challenges confronting them. To achieve this goal, the project will continue to work with CSOs and political groups who are actively involved in peace-building and political reforms by developing leadership capacity so that they can effectively direct their respective organizations, their immediate constituencies, and the general public to work for peace and democratic governance. Furthermore, the project will emphasize the participation of marginalized segments of society like women, youth and indigenous peoples to make sure that these groups and sectors are not left out, in terms of participation, representation and inclusion of their agenda in the process of building the Bangsamoro community and the government.
The DELACSE Bangsamoro Phase 2 envisions to further build the capacity of around 80 CSOs and political groups in the Bangsamoro. It will continue to conduct training seminars, training of trainers and thematic courses in the form of lectures and customized courses in order to enhance the competencies of around 2,500 women and men leaders. In addition to this, learning exposures outside the country particularly in Timor Leste, Germany, and Belgium will be organized as well, in order for these leaders to gain deeper knowledge on how civil society and political organizations work with governments in other countries. Partner stakeholders will be provided also with simplified learning materials to equip them with the necessary learning resources especially the trained trainers when they conduct political and civic education to their respective organizations and the public. It will also support organizational strengthening of partner organizations by providing them technical advice through the mentorship program as well as encouraging them to expand their advocacy initiatives by means of small grants for projects which are highly relevant to peace-building and democratic governance in Bangsamoro. The project will likewise provide avenues to partner organizations to engage the public in building policy agenda for the Bangsamoro government.
