|
Makati City, April 22, 2005 - Twenty young professionals
from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and neighboring
conflict-affected areas are acquiring a unique perspective on
legislative policymaking through a special internship sponsored
by the U.S. government, the Mindanao State University and the
Philippine House of Representatives.
Michael
J. Yates, Mission Director, United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) spoke at yesterday's launch of the third cycle
of the Congressional Internship Program for Young Muslim Leaders
(CIPYML), which is providing the competitively-selected participants
with an opportunity to gain practical experience in legislation
and policy formulation through a four-month internship at the
House of Representatives.
"The
skills you will develop through this internship, and the insights
you will gain from this experience, will serve you well as you
work toward bringing peace and prosperity to the ARMM, Mindanao,
and the Philippines," said Yates.
CIPYML
is a partnership among the Philippine Congress, Mindanao State
University, and the United States Agency for International Development
(USAID). It is managed by USAID's Growth with Equity in Mindanao
(GEM) Program.
The
initiative, as proposed to the U.S. Embassy by Speaker Jose de
Venecia in 2002 is "designed to provide the future leaders in
Mindanao with practical knowledge and skills in public policymaking
and familiarity with national and local governance systems," said
Michael G. Langsdorf, GEM Deputy Program Manager for Education
and Governance.
The
interns will be assigned to legislative committees and subcommittees,
and to the offices of selected members of Congress. Their activities
will include special training programs and field visits to government
agencies and local government units, as well as the preparation
of special reports, policy studies and draft legislation. They
will also attend plenary sessions of Congress and activities in
the Senate.
The
20 interns are all natives of ARMM or conflict-affected areas
in Mindanao, including the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Tawi-Tawi,
Maguindanao, Sulu, Basilan, and North Cotabato, and Zamboanga
City, the Islamic City of Marawi, and General Santos City.
Their
close interaction with members of Congress and government officials
will provide the interns with the chance to serve as advocates
for their region and to develop an informal network of contacts
in the policymaking sector.
"The
internship will serve as an opportunity for us to see our Congress
people at work. It will bring us to a higher level of understanding
about the concerns of our people in relation to the rest of the
country. It will teach us the mechanics of translating concerns
into policies to help uplift the lives of people," said Alkhaulan
Hasim, an intern from Zamboanga City.
Twelve
of the interns graduated from Mindanao State University, while
the rest obtained their college degrees from other Mindanao institutions.
Eleven of the interns are women.
(Janice Fay Sevilla, GEM Program)
|
