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A small IFAD-funded grant project in Western Mindanao took up the challenge of helping former combatants return to civilian life not long after decades of conflict had formally ended. The project provided life skills and technical support to participants, helping them win acceptance in their villages as productive and peaceful farmers and fishers.

Conducting stocking of grouper fingerlings.  Former combatants have learned modern aquaculture techniques as part of a small IFAD-funded grant project in Tawi-Tawi.

Despite its highly fertile land and rich sea resources, Tawi-Tawi in Western Mindanao is one of the poorest and least developed provinces in the Philippines. For decades a theatre of conflict between the government and Islamic separatist movements, it has suffered devastating human and economic losses over the years. A comprehensive peace accord was signed between the Government and the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996, in which the Government agreed to “address the root causes of the rebellion and social unrest” and to “seek the reconciliation and reintegration of former combatants”.

It was in this difficult situation, with tensions still simmering, that the Western Mindanao Community Initiatives Project was launched in 1998. In addition to loan financing, and as part of United Nations-wide efforts to support the peace and development process, IFAD provided grant funds to help former combatant returnees in Tawi-Tawi make the hard transition from military to civilian life.

The grant project targeted households of former combatants in the municipality of Panglima, Sugaltu, Tawi-Tawi. Its objective was to help them establish and consolidate land ownership and become productive farmers and fishers. This was considered a first and important step towards their full reintegration into Philippine society.

The start of grant project activities was delayed by more than three years, even though the funds were grant resources. This was because all involved – the ex-combatants themselves, the government, receiving communities even IFAD supervision staff – had serious doubts. As Madoh Sahiron, a former mid-level commander of the Moro National Liberation Front and a returnee farmer-tenant, admits: “The idea of development, especially coming from the government, was not that acceptable to us.” It took IFAD’s presence as an honest broker, coupled with a dedicated project office, to break the impasse.

A Peaceful approach

Halid Jali and other former rebels.  This group of returnees in Panglima Sugaltu, Tawi-Tawi, are now peaceful farmers.

The project concentrated on agriculture and aquaculture, which had been identified by the returnees as their main livelihood sources. It helped increase agricultural productivity by introducing high-yielding varieties, improved seeds, fertilizers and agrochemicals, and by providing training in new techniques, particularly in cassava production, integrated farming systems and integrated farm nurseries. The project also provided the former combatants with a tractor and other farm inputs. Participants, in turn, contributed their labour and local materials to the project.

Aquaculture activities included the production and marketing of high-value marine species, establishment of a hatchery at Tawi-Tawi, abalone production and seaweed production.
Because one of the “root causes” of the insurgency was land rights, the Government decided to issue a number of land title certificates to returnees. During project implementation, 932 certificates were awarded to former combatants, who were then more motivated than ever to become successful farmers.

The project also supported the start-up of small rural enterprises in the area, creating income-generating opportunities that are expected to propel development in this former rebel enclave.

Kresler Romero, the provincial project manager, points out that, although the grant project was originally intended for 1,000 returnees, the project’s outreach was far greater, with activities actually benefiting 3,860 people in the project area.

As a result of project interventions, the income of beneficiaries has increased by as much as 60 per cent. Some have used this extra income to buy household appliances and fishing boats, while others can now afford to send their children to primary and secondary schools.

“We were given the chance to prove our worth in society. This in turn contributed to economic growth and development, and most importantly, to bringing peace to the area,” comments another former rebel leader, Halid Jali.

Some considerations

A key finding of this rather small grant of US$750,000 is that a lot can be achieved, even in extremely complex situations, through direct conflict resolution and conflict management, which allows trust to be slowly built from the ground up. The role that IFAD played as an honest broker was crucial to the success of the grant project, which, despite initial delays, picked up momentum in its third year and was completed by its fifth.

Alas, the grant amount and related effort were infinitesimal when compared with the task of addressing the deep, intertwined root causes of the low-level civil strife in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Sadly, the overall conflict is still nowhere near a final resolution.

The impact of the IFAD grant project continues to be confined to those 3,000-odd families in five villages in Tawi-Tawi who benefited directly from it. No spillover effects have been recorded elsewhere so far. Therefore, many more of these types of direct conflict resolution endeavours may need to be supported by IFAD and others for there to be major impacts beyond the village level.

Source: IFAD