Explore Official Dialogue Feedback

There is not much divergence observed during the symposium proper, as well as during the discussions in the open forum. The activities done by the DA-FAO-GEF Project in the pilot sites can be duplicated in other local communities for sustainable food production within their respective capacities and circumstances. The SUCs and other educational institutions/agencies shall provide science-based knowledge in preserving traditional knowledge and practices in capacitating the vulnerable and marginalized like the IPs. The trade-off, on the other hand, can include the possibility of low-yielding var... Read moreieties, presence of pest and disease management, etc. Read less

As an initial intervention, the DA launched a locally funded program called Kabuhayan at Kaunlaran ng Kababayang Katutubo (4K). The program aims to provide assistance to the ICCs/IPs in the form of agricultural and fisheries related livelihood opportunities, investments, and various support services. Thus, the activity was conducted to: • Contribute to the statement on UN transformational pathways • Enhance awareness on the new DA 4K banner program • Enhance awareness of other agencies with programs for Indigenous Peoples • Generate recommendation on concerns and interventions from oth... Read moreer agencies regarding Indigenous Peoples beneficiaries • Solicit inputs such as challenges and best practices that can serve more in the Indigenous Peoples Development in their Ancestral Domain The DA 4K presented the legal policies, laws and framework governing IPs in the Philippines all of which must be respected and followed when IPs are involved with the interventions. They also discussed the Ethnography of IPs in the Philippines and included the Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) areas. Then, a brief program description of the DA 4K was discussed which this includes the program’s objectives, selection criteria and framework. The DA 4K works by components 1.) Social preparation – where community assessment takes place, then capability trainings for the IPOs to enhance their skills and help them express themselves better especially to agencies. 2.) Agri-Fisheries section – where the program conducts various trainings and provide interventions that relates to Agri-fisheries culture, this new technology provided by the trainings and interventions must respect the Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Practices (IKSP). 3.) Finance – focuses on the budget of the whole project and 4.) Monitoring and Evaluation – monitors the program status. Read less

Main findings during the dialogue are the IKSP, Philippines is known for their rich culture and every single Indigenous Community has its own unique culture, knowledge and practices that includes their way towards food production. With all the new technology provided to us today the DA 4K still implements its intervention in respect to the IP Culture in order to preserve it to more generations to come. As our mandate the new technology for food production must co-exist with IKSP to improve their access to more safe and nutritious food. By employing the IKSP with the intervention given, it boos... Read morets nature positive food production with less focus on machineries and materials that might harm the environment since part of the IKSP is protecting their Ancestral Domain. Roadblocks when interacting with Indigenous Peoples within Ancestral Domain • Areas are located at remote, far-flung and upland areas • IPs are easy to get involve in armed conflict and recruited to join in anti-government movement • Wastage of provided intervention • Lack of knowledge on technology on agriculture and livelihood • Lack of information and negative outlook Read less

Discussion of Possible Solutions to Roadblocks encountered (Please see PPT table) Who should be involved when interacting with IPs within AD? • Department of Agriculture • DA Regional Field Office – DA implementing arms, • National Commission on Indigenous Peoples – main government agency for IPs • Indigenous People Organizations – main beneficiaries) Best Practices from other agencies Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations – discussed their practices towards their support to Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous Cultural Communities. FAO is a specialized age... Read morency of the UN for food, nutrition, agriculture, fisheries and forestry and one of their mandates is to work closely with IPs/ICCs. Like the DA 4K, due effort is done by FAO to include the IPs/ICCs beliefs, customs, traditions in all FAO’s work United Nations Women – UN Women is the United Nations organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. IP Women globally experience cross-cutting discrimination that exacerbates inequalities. With, this UN Women presented ideas on making IP Women contributions count. This is done by consistently collecting gender/sex/age disaggregated data especially for IP women, Document IP women’s narratives and experiences, ensure IP women’s voices are heard during consultation, develop gender & culture sensitive processes as well as information, and ensure that GAD Budget allocation are included on programs and projects especially with IP women. IFAD – shared their policy on Indigenous Peoples, adopting a three-fold approach in carrying that mandate. IP global forum has institutionalized consultations and dialogues with representatives of IP institutions, The Indigenous Peoples Assistance Facility (IPAF) which is an innovative funding instrument that IPs/ICCs can use to finance small projects, IFAD investment projects in the respective countries that integrates inclusion of IPs in the development projects of partner government implementing agencies. Read less

There was not much divergence among the agencies when it came to implementing their interventions towards Ips. The DA 4K and the UN agencies employ their interventions with respect to the culture and practices of the Indigenous Communities to preserve their culture while improving food production, ensuring safe and nutritious food for all without / minimally affecting the culture of the beneficiaries.

Given the country’s aging farming population, the engagement of the youth in food systems is of predominant importance. Thus, the National Dialogue served as a platform to discuss mechanisms to encourage and motivate the youth to take the lead in transforming food systems. Specifically, the National Dialogue aimed to: 1) Facilitate exchange of information on the best practices and initiatives aimed to provide access to knowledge and information to improve the skills of youth along the value chain; 2) Identify gaps and challenges, and determine areas of joint action in developing integrated a... Read morepproaches to advance the participation of youth in food systems; and 3) Translate this knowledge into policy-related actionable recommendations. Youth as stakeholders in food systems are viewed as potential agents of change. Thus, there is a need not only to recognize but also to put into action the role that today's youth will have in the development trajectories and future sustainability of food systems. Read less

The National Dialogue was structured to have two plenary sessions, which focused on 1) efforts and initiatives on engaging the youth, and 2) the role of youth in food systems. Efforts and Initiatives on Engaging the Youth in Food Systems In this session, several activities and programs initiated by both government and non-government organizations were presented, all of which are aimed at building capacities, providing opportunities, and setting the policy environment in order to advance the involvement of youth in food systems. Although there exists a variety of interventions, it was highlight... Read moreed that changing the mindset of the youth should start as early as childhood and should emanate from within their homes. Attracting the interest of young people therefore requires engaging their parents, teachers, and the community as a whole. While there are efforts towards increasing the appreciation of youth in agriculture, success would only be attained if these are complemented by efforts to promote awareness of agriculture as a viable and rewarding career. The Role of Youth in Food Systems Building upon the discussions in the first plenary session, the second session focused on how the youth, given their capabilities, are taking part or could take part in transforming food systems. Hence, central to the discussion was the need for collective effort to establish the foundation and address key constraints on involving the youth in agriculture and the food systems as a whole. In particular, the needs of the young people have to be addressed—among others, they should be given access to education and resources that would help them build their expertise and be equipped with the right skillset. Most importantly, youth must be given the opportunity to participate in various decision-making and agricultural policy-making bodies initiated by the government and private sector. At the end of the Dialogue, the importance of having collaborative effort among government, private sector, and other agencies in changing the mindset of the youth towards agriculture was emphasized. Read less

The following outcomes were based on the issues and recommendations gathered during the open forum as well as in the feedback form that was distributed to the participants at the end of the Dialogue. Efforts and Initiatives on Engaging the Youth in Food Systems 1. Access to education was regarded as one of the most vital steps towards youth engagement. Under the Department of Education (DepEd), the following efforts are being pursued: a. Agri-fishery as one of the components of its Technology and Livelihood Education (TLE). It also provides 23 specialized subjects related to agriculture for Se... Read morenior High School. b. Gulayan sa Paaralan Program, which aims to teach the children/youth the opportunities in agriculture and fisheries. 2. For secondary level education, the plan is still being shaped and surveys are being conducted from different universities for their inputs to make the curriculum attractive and enterprise-ready. 3. Agriculture should not be focused solely on the aspect of production; if the goal is securing the engagement of the youth in agriculture and food systems, then there should be opportunities for them to take up jobs across each component of the agri-food system. 4. Participants pointed out that opportunities for employment especially in the agriculture sector are scarce. Thus, there is a need to transform the curriculum into one that is employment- and enterprise-ready. 5. Parents and members of the local community play major roles in shaping the mindset of youth towards agriculture. If young people were to be taught as early as their childhood, then appreciation of agriculture will be inculcated towards adulthood. 6. There is a need to strengthen information, education and communication (IEC) campaigns to bring awareness and provide more information about these programs. 7. Engaging the youth should be a holistic approach; thus, there is a need to work hand in hand with other actors/agents of change in the food system such as the academe, the industry, and government agencies, among others. It was also acknowledged that the media play important roles in creating awareness on the value of agri-food systems. The Role of Youth in Food Systems 1. To gather the views and perception of young people, prior to the start of the Dialogue, participants were asked to describe the role of the youth in the transformation of food systems. These responses revealed that there exists a certain level of awareness among young people on how important their role is in transforming food systems. 2. To realize the potential of young people as future leaders and agents of change, there is a need to address bottlenecks in every segment of youth engagement and involvement in agri-food systems. Participants were asked to identify the major challenges being faced by young people involved in food systems. The following responses revealed the importance of government in providing opportunities and ensuring access to support mechanisms: ● Lack of knowledge and/or access to resources and government support ● Lack of experience and employment opportunities ● Lack of access to technology and financial support 3. There is a need to democratize, and be deliberate and intentional on youth involvement because young participants have different impacts in the agri-fishery industry. They need to be provided with the right platform, taking into consideration the balance in geographical location, age, gender, etc. 4. To promote the goal and strengthen the voices of young farmers and fisherfolk, the first step is for them to be recognized by the state legislators. Thus, a bill, entitled Magna Carta for Young Farmers Act, has been filed in Congress, seeking a Magna Carta for the youth to promote and protect the rights of young farmers. 5. Youth should be recognized as stakeholders. Thus, there is a need to ensure that the youth are given a voice in decision-making processes of the government and private sector. 6. There is a need to have a concerted effort among the public and the private sectors in promoting opportunities in agriculture (with the value chain in focus). Read less

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There is not much divergence of perspectives among the participants since the facilitators were adept at steering the discussions towards consensus building. Among the areas of divergence that cropped up is the role of LGUs in ensuring sustainability of potential ABCs. While some argued that projects or initiatives that are inherently good and promise a high ROI are intrinsically shielded from politics, others countered that this may not be true most of the time depending on the culture of governance and priorities of elected local leaders.

The Forum directly focused on the identified models as existing prototypes of promising Agri-Industrial Business Corridors (ABCs) that can serve as mechanisms for a) promoting sustainable agricultural development through value chains within agricultural clusters along existing infrastructure corridors, b) establishing transformative multi-sectoral public-private partnerships, and c) providing catalytic financing to attract capital from domestic and international, public and private sources. The ABC is actually one of the key strategies of the ONE DA reform agenda in transforming Philippine agr... Read moreiculture and fisheries, specifically under the major category - Industrialization, that will guide the DA in pursuing major programs and activities that can pave the way towards attaining a modest agriculture and fisheries sector growth. The main objectives of ABCs are a) to disperse agri-based industries to the regions and decongest highly populated urban centers, b) to entice the private sector to invest and to allow greater application of modern farm technology and knowledge that aims to dramatically raise agricultural productivity, c) to integrate smallholder farmers by providing them access to resources, including state-of-the-art production technology, capital, and value-adding facilities, and d) to help address employment challenges in the “new normal” or post-COVID-19 environment. Read less

The major findings of the forum based on analysis conducted during the workshop includes the strengths and vulnerabilities as well as replicability of each ABC model: Small-Island Economy: The Case of Bantayan Island Among the strengths of this model includes being able to capitalize on the biosecurity aspect given its characteristic as an island with a natural barrier that protects it from human or man-made-induced spread of pests and diseases. Likewise, the leadership of the current local administration proves to be a formidable force towards developing the island’s economy through the cra... Read morefting of a local agri-fisheries comprehensive development and investment plan linked or coordinated with the Department of Agriculture’s programs to maximize the rich resources of the municipality. Finally, being an island municipality of the Province of Cebu which is a “magnet” for tourists with high propensity on consumption of seafood, demand for fisheries and aquaculture products will surely increase ensuring ready market that will ultimately help boost the economy of the island. Vulnerabilities of the model are hinged more on the existing capacities of the local fishers (including women) who need to be trained on the business and technology aspects of production and value adding as well as ensuring sustainability of programs and projects in case of change in administration which might shift the priorities of the LGU. In terms of replicability of the business model, the island economy model is viable and may be replicated depending on the political will and receptiveness of other island municipalities to open up their areas for commerce. Possible options and opportunities for change involves the participation of the private sector especially in the development of nurseries (hatcheries – specifically for milkfish and rabbit fish) and in capacitating the local fisherfolk in the island particularly in the non-capital intensive industries, such as seaweeds, mussels etc., and in the development of aquaculture and ecotourism industries. Corollary to this is enforcement of policies for marine protected areas in partnership with the marine police to prevent destruction of fishery habitats and other possible production areas. Small Brother-Big Brother Partnership: Clustering Sustainable Aquaculture Parks The strength of this model includes full support of enabling laws such as the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law, Build-Operate-and-Transfer (BOT) Law, Local Investment Code, Guidelines and Procedures for Entering into Joint Venture (JV) Agreements Between Government and Private Entities, the DILG-PPPC Joint Memorandum Order 2019-01 or the LGU P4, etc. This entails a whole-of-society approach with high degree of replicability, hence, a good model in generating jobs, income and ultimately in addressing food security. Perhaps, the perceived vulnerabilities along this model are more on the need to establish the required infrastructure and logistics component especially in rural areas. This is where government may come in to catalyze the growth of agribusiness and pouring in of private sector investments by providing the needed infrastructure support. Possible options and opportunities for change available in the context of this model are the available credit facilities for micro, small, medium and large enterprises through banks (like Land Bank and Development Bank of the Philippines) and other financial institutions as well as programs offered by concerned agencies like Agricultural Credit Policy Council and Cooperative Development Authority. Seed System Innovations: The National Seed Technology Park (NSTP) The NSTP is probably the most definitive model of a component of a budding ABC in one of the growing industrial hubs of the country. Its strengths are inherently built in its infrastructure component that can serve as one stop shop accessible to farmers. Technology innovations through the establishment of the NSTP can definitely be sustained which consequently serve as an incubation hub of technology. Vulnerabilities of this model are budget-related, especially in its fledgling stage to ensure sustainability. As such, and similar with the Clustering Sustainable Aquaculture Parks, it should take advantage of the provisions of existing enabling laws. Possible options and opportunities to address its vulnerabilities include a) Strengthen the seed industry through the establishment of an Office to handle/steer the Seed Industry Development Program, b) Integrate the functions of DA agencies, academe and other concerned agencies in seed development, c) Replicate the National Seed Technology Parks in other parts of the country; d) Strengthen and provide financing to the Seed Industry Council, e) Continuously provide capacity building activities, farmers training facilities, and shared service facilities, and f) Revisit the existing laws and regulations on seed industry to amend provisions that constrain or hamper its growth and development. Read less

Outcomes of the forum are recommended priority actions that can contribute to the narratives along the five-point action tracks. For the small island economy model, there is a need to include in the national fisheries and aquaculture commodity industry roadmaps the development of small island economies as a major strategy. This is not only to ensure improvement in the economy and ultimately in the lives of people in the island municipalities but also to shield this development intervention from local politics that may shift priorities when there’s change in local administration. To further s... Read moreustain this model, participation of the private sector especially in the development of nurseries (hatcheries) to put up with the requirements of the island is of paramount importance. There is also a need to capacitate the local fisherfolk as well as women in the island especially in value-adding of fish products to create more jobs in the community. Finally, to prevent the possible entry of pest and diseases in the island, an “all-out, no-in” policy in ensuring biosecurity should be considered. For the Clustering Sustainable Aquaculture Parks, one strongly recommended priority action is the identification of platforms for replicability in the local level wherein the LGUs are more capacitated to adopt the Big Brother–Small Brother (BB-SB) partnership, considering the following: • Group readiness to adopt the partnership • Transparency (farm gate price, long term agreements) • Production incentives • Credit access and financing programs • Collaboration with intermediaries • Policy support • Gender-responsive Another is the establishment of a strong market linkage based on the whole-of-society approach through the inclusion of CSOs, NGAs, LGUs and private companies through the conduct of roadshows, widening up of the collaborative mechanism among cooperatives such as “Coop Kapatid Program”, and the utilization of information technology and social media platforms for market expansion. In the case of the NSTP, the identified options and opportunities for change were likewise considered to be the priority actions to be considered. Read less

The Dialogue focused on the four of the eight paradigms of the Philippine Department of Agriculture’s “New Thinking in Agriculture”– modernization, industrialization, consolidation, and infrastructure development. All of these paradigms are anchored on investments, the bulk of which comes from the private sector. Since responsible agricultural investments should contribute to food security and nutrition, among other principles, key challenges, gaps and areas of improvement were discussed to identify and formulate necessary policies and interventions from the government to address these... Read more concerns. Read less

The following were the findings and recommendations of the National Dialogue on Responsible Investments in Agriculture: 1. Investments in agriculture are necessary for food and nutrition security. Based on the discussion, there is a need to work on incentives, technology, credit support and investments in the whole agriculture value chain, particularly on farm consolidation or clustering to achieve economies of scale for a market-driven, value-chain oriented food system. One important suggestion is for the government to launch an awareness campaign highlighting the advantages if farmers and fi... Read moreshers consolidate/cluster. 2. It is vital to increase the confidence level of investors in the agriculture and fisheries sector. A step towards this goal can be observed in the passing of the CREATE Law. With this, the government should openly engage with the private sector to maximize government policies on investment and support in the agriculture sector. 3. The government needs to prioritize provisions of fiscal incentives to help the private sector regain confidence after going through the adverse effects of the pandemic. The government and its stakeholders should continue working together to achieve national food security. Furthermore, investments should focus more on post-harvest infrastructure, such as cold storage facilities, warehouses, and refrigeration facilities to mitigate post-harvest losses and food wastage along the value chain, and to develop markets for perishable products, among others. 4. The private sector takes big risks when investing in agriculture. Therefore, the government should provide a fair, transparent, consistent, and enabling environment. Furthermore, the farmer/beneficiary/cooperator should also be considered by the private sector/investor so that they share in the wealth generated by the land. 5. Statistically, it is possible to achieve zero hunger by 2030 but this will need extreme political will. Specifically, this period will practically cover two administrations which may not necessarily have the same political vision. There is a need to continuously increase production and investment to level up the agri-fishery sector. Consequently, this shall address the demand of the growing population of Filipinos. 6. The efforts of the government should be clearly targeted and focused to achieve the SDGs by 2030. For example, government interventions should target stunting among Filipino children. 7. The government should take a whole-of-country approach seriously and beyond this administration. This includes ensuring the active participation of non-government stakeholders in eradicating hunger, achieving food security and improved nutrition, and promoting sustainable and responsible agriculture. Read less

The results of the Dialogue are as follows: 1. Extensive discussion on the CREATE Law It was shared that both the government and private sectors support and are very optimistic about the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law. The law improves the country’s incentive system including the reduction of the corporate income tax rate and aims to lower investment costs for borrowers and operating capital. It was underscored that this law will also help the country become more competitive, particularly with other ASEAN countries, as it elicits and encourages more invest... Read morements into the country. It was also suggested that the CREATE law be amended to consider imposing taxes on imported finished goods to level up the playing field. 2. Demonstration of support for Land consolidation and clustering It was underscored that land consolidation and clustering is an avenue to help modernize agriculture and will help improve the payment capacity of borrowers, through efficient production and marketing. This strategy also addresses the concerns of some investors who would like to invest in a big area of land, which could not be catered before without clustered lands. It was highlighted that this strategy could only succeed when full support is given in the whole value chain in terms of technology, financing, marketing, and enabling the policy environment. Aside from these, legitimizing clustering was also recognized as a priority for the private sector. Through this initiative, there is assurance that support is being provided for the whole value chain. On the side of the government, concerns such as rapid sharing, marketing agreement and income concerns of farmers with the corporations, as well as pole-vaulting or side-selling issues were raised. Awareness campaigns could highlight the benefits of clustering/consolidation. Monitoring of productivity and income will help meet the goals of farmers. There is also a need to develop a more effective business model by cooperatives. 3. Empowering the community of farmers, workers, and independent beneficiaries There were main strategies shared by the private sector during the dialogue. First, there must be partnership between and among the farmers. This partnership must include a mechanism by which the produce of the farmers are to be purchased by the private sector or investors. Second, machineries must be provided and be made available to the farmers. Third, farmers must be taught new techniques (e.g. rejuvenating and rehabilitation of farms to increase farmers’ production and income). Government support must be in place (e.g. financing assistance and incentives). 4. Enabling environment for agricultural investment The tax programs of the government should be expanded to the whole value chain. Engagement of the government with the private sector through public private partnership was also recognized.Another suggestion was focused on increasing the investments in technology. 5. Soliciting more support from the government The private sector underscored the necessity for the government to prioritize fiscal incentives because it gives confidence for them to get back from the adverse effects of the pandemic and for the farmers to continue producing goods. It should also invest in post-harvest infrastructure, such as cold storage facilities, warehouses, and refrigeration facilities to mitigate post-harvest losses and food wastage along the value chain, thereby expanding markets for perishable products, among others. The private sector also shared its support to the government’s approach of “One region, one product” since not all crops can be planted in all regions. 6. Commitment to work in achieving zero hunger by 2030 There is a need for extreme political will. Government interventions in eliminating hunger should be well targeted and focused and this requires the necessity for disaggregated data. Interventions should start at the level of expectant and lactating mothers.Finally, school feeding programs should be expanded.The government should take the whole-of-country approach. Read less

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We cannot hope for sustainable development without peace, stability, human rights and effective governance, based on the rule of law. Yet our world is increasingly divided. Some regions enjoy peace, security and prosperity, while others fall into seemingly endless cycles of conflict and violence. This is not inevitable and must be addressed. By using the framework for Analyzing the Demographic Dimension of Peace and Security, the following were emphasized: • Migration of lowlanders to the upland areas could be a source of peace and order problems; • An expanding urban population with an ec... Read moreonomy that is not providing commensurate socioeconomic growth could instigate political instability; • Where education is low and poverty incidence and hunger is high, conflict or crimes are likely to be higher and demand for peace and security interventions is also likely to be higher; • Cultural ideologies pose a threat to peace and security (e.g. ideology based armed conflicts or IBACs, tribal wars); • Political conflicts in specific areas likewise affect the status of peace and security; and • Economic reforms and development opportunities impact on securing peace. Along this line, conflict has strong and unambiguous adverse effects on food security and nutrition. It is the major driver of food insecurity and malnutrition, both acute and chronic. The causal effects of conflict-food security nexus vary across conflict zones, but common features are disruptions in the food production and food systems, plundering of crops and livestock, loss of assets and incomes, hence directly and directly affecting food access. Read less

Using the conceptual framework for Peace Development, Population and Poverty it identified some takeaways to include: • Ideology based armed conflicts (IBACs) delay the development of affected communities • IBACs can be resolved with strong institutional support from national and local governments • IBACs has affected the resiliency of the population The IBACs impinge upon development. Poverty and deprivation are conflated reasons for armed conflict, where delivery of services, livelihood and economic activities of the population are disrupted or delayed, and thus, IBAC-affected areas ar... Read moree left behind by their counterparts. IBACs develop in remote and poverty stricken communities where social services such as schools, health facilities are barely delivered or none at all due to inaccessibility. Frustrations over impeded delivery by local government of basic social services including infrastructure and utilities translate to dissent. IBACs impact on population factors as in migration (in-migration); in-migration in search for safer areas such is an inevitable reaction to armed violence. The movement of the population towards urbanized areas is largely temporary, the sources of their livelihood and properties being located in their original domiciles. Combined poverty reduction, population management, peace development and peace-making strategies are needed to make a dent on the effects of IBACs on the population. The attainment of lasting and sustainable peace through peace-making coming from state, non-state actors with the direct involvement of the grassroots in the IBAC affected areas enables the population to move forward to development. Policy enhances and strengthens peace development, poverty reduction and peace-making. The attainment of peace as a matter of policy will realize peace dividends. Policy change and policy advocacy are necessary towards full development of IBAC areas. Read less

The integration of peace-making and peace building in community-based development planning through organization and development of consultation mechanisms in planning as well as direct peoples’ participation in peace-making and peace development in IBAC areas. There is need to review policies and implement advocacy plans at all levels of governance through the following actions: • Push for the adoption of an improved local peacemaking in the national agenda for peace and review to strengthen presently adopted institutional approach in security forces’ peace development policy in IBAC are... Read moreas. • Revisit and draw lessons for improving the processes involved in successful local peacemaking initiatives. • Revisit the bottoms-up-budgeting as fiscal policy to enhance acquisition of peace development programs or peace development funds and resources. • Develop and enact fiscal policy measures that enhance access to local and national legislated funds for peacemaking and peace development in IBAC areas. Another take away is to improve and support strategies to strengthen food security and nutrition in conflict affected areas vis a vis strengthening of peace building specifically on agricultural productivity, livelihood, infrastructure and expansion of market and value chain management. Some of the policy recommendations provided and agreed include: • Improve institutional mechanisms for more integrative programs (e.g. integration of population management strategies in food security and anti-hunger mitigation programs); • Strengthen the population and development integration policy and program (i.e. comprehensively address concerns on population distribution due to unmanaged internal migration and optimizing changing age structure – demographic dividend; • Reduce regional imbalance in economic opportunities by expanding economic opportunities in other regions outside NCR, Central Luzon and CALABARZON; • Enhance the linkages within the core system of food systems (production, aggregation, processing, distribution and consumption) and their support service providers, as well as the interactions between the core system and social and natural contexts they are embedded in, affected by and have impacts on; and • Enhance governance mechanisms among diverse stakeholders of the food systems. Read less