In pursuit of advances in records management, the Ministry of Human Settlements and Development (MHSD), the Housing Arm of the BARMM partook in the Seminar-Workshop on Effective Records Management conducted by the Development Academy of the Bangsamoro (DAB) in cooperation with the World Bank Group (WBG), held at the Civil Service Commission Auditorium in Quezon City, Manila on March 5, 2024.

Charanie B. Pandi, Records Officer and Salembai A. Abdullah, Information Officer represented the MHSD and learned the WBG’s Records Management Roadmap that has been instrumental in the successful record-keeping system of one of the world’s largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries.

April Gail Miller, Manager of the WBG Archives and Records, introduced the WBG Records Management Roadmap that is the first-ever system assessment developed exclusively for the public sector.

Miller said a solid records management program helps organizations be efficient, effective, accountable, transparent, and compliant.

“Records management is the process of creating, storing, using, preserving, and disposing of records and other sources of evidence in a way that ensures they serve as authentic and reliable proof for as long as they are needed,” she shared.

Pandi and Abdullah, with the other participants from the different ministries, agencies, and offices (MAOs) of the BARMM, learned and appreciated the roadmap and the relevance and practicality of its seven significant destinations.

Miller explained that Destination 1 is reached if the organization recognizes the value of managing records effectively; Destination 2 is when organization’s records management program is managed strategically; Destination 3 is reached if the organization commits sufficient resources to support records management, Destination 4 is when the organization recognizes the link between records and information technology.

Destination 5 is arrived at if the organization manages records effectively and accountably; Destination 6 is when the organization provides appropriate access to records; and Destination 7 is reached when the organization stores records appropriately and dispose of them regularly. 

Interactive exercises were conducted to determine the four key records management challenges that were supplied by the participants including their first impressions on the seminar’s worth.

A workshop on assessing the status of records management of the participants’ organizations based on the milestones and destinations presented was then conducted and facilitated by Purity Muthoni Mwagha, WBG Program Lead Information Management Services and Loida Faustino, WBG Information Assistant.

Dr. Normia A. Salindal, DAB Division Chief of Finance and Administrative Division, concluded the seminar by emphasizing the significance of flourishing records management across BARMM MAOs in ensuring excellence in regional governance.