A team of five technical people from the Ministry of Human Settlements and Development (MHSD) of the BARMM carried out the Provincial Land Use Committees (PLUCs) Orientation on the Review and Approval Process of Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Island Provinces of the BARMM on March 27-31, 2021.

The orientation was conducted in two parts with the Ministry of the Interior and Local Government (MILG), of which the first was done at the Beachside Hotel and Restaurant, Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, which was joined by participants from Basilan, followed by the orientation held on March 30-31 at the Sulu Area Coordinating Center, Patikul, Sulu.

The activities were facilitated by the Provincial Planning and Development Coordinators (PPDCs) of the BaSulTa island provinces. The core ministries in attendance, chaired by the PPDC, constitute the PLUC, which reviews and approves the CLUPs submitted by the cities and municipalities of the BARMM.

These ministries were the MILG, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR), Ministry of Trade, Investment and Tourism (MTIT), Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources and Energy (MENRE), and the Ministry of Public Works (MPW).

Joining the ministries were different agencies, non-government organizations, other ministries, and representatives from local government units, all of which actively participated in the workshop and reviewed CLUPs using parameters required from the PLUC members.

Engr. Muslima K. Abusama, Housing and Homesite Regulations Officer, said the activity was organized and sponsored by the MILG Regional Office (RO) upon the initiative of the MILG BaSulTa offices.

With the need to capacitate PLUCs of the island provinces in reviewing and approving CLUPS, the MILG RO tapped the MHSD to provide technical training and assistance to the PLUCs.

The MHSD’s training team was headed by Engr. Abusama, who provided inputs on the Overview of CLUP Preparation and Functions of the PLUCs as well as the CLUP Review Parameters.

She was joined by Sultan Ali M. Macadaag, Housing and Homesite Regulations Officer, who discussed the CLUP Review Process. Completing the team were Tristan Lito B. Orinday, IT/GIS Mapper, who presented the CLUP required maps, with Datunohaz A. Daud, IT Officer, and Mursidier A. Sajili, Project Development Officer, assisting the team.

Deputy Minister Jose I. Lorena, in his message during the Tawi-Tawi leg of the training, hoped that in attending the orientation, the participants learned and realized planning for the people, and not planning for any others.

He also emphasized the need to achieve a balance between development and environment when planning, otherwise too much development may result in destruction.