The Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society (CBCS) with its project entitled: “Enhancing Citizens’ Capacity for Transparent, Accountable and Participative Governance “, Code named TAP-G Project being implemented in different part of Mindanao is currently undergoing external evaluations in its Eight Cluster areas of operation in Mindanao. The current evaluation involves Cluster areas from Island Provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi followed by Sibugay and Lanao cluster comprising provinces of Sibugay and Zamboanga del Sur and Lanao del Sur and Marawi City respectively. This will be followed by the Clusters of Kutawato, Rajah Buayan and Davao that started in May 9 and would last up to middle of July 2022.
In its opening statement, the Project Coordinator Ismael G. Kulat stressed that Evaluation of any undertakings is crucial as: “Evaluation is an important elements of Management Cycle and therefore management cannot be completed without it, although the process is being neglected by many in their endeavors.“
He further emphasized that TAP-G is the longest serving flagship project of CBCS for the last fifteen years in partnership with MISEREOR, an international organization based in Germany.
The project had been subjected to external evaluation every three years. And added that: “It is in this evaluation that we are able to measure whether our intervention had been effective in affecting changes in the problems that we engage on. It is also in this evaluation where we be able to measure how familiar are you with the interventions. And therefore, you as the implementer and partners in different cluster areas are the best people to testify where are our strengths, weaknesses and deficiencies as well as the possible alternative courses of actions to be taken in order to achieve our goals and for future references.”
On the other hand, the External Evaluator Prof. Ervin More who also engaged in international consultancy and evaluation works in other countries defined evaluation simply as means of “valuation or giving values, rating or grading to a certain undertakings as bases of decision-making.“
Prof. More stressed that: “The usual loopholes in many external evaluation is concerned only to the dynamics of the project it
self. For me, we must include in our external evaluation, what had our projects and activities did in promoting the Bangsamoro struggle for right to self-determination. Considering also that it is embodied in CBCS vision the respect and exercise of the right to self-determination of peoples.“
He further elaborated that: “Achieving the aspiration of the Bangsamoro’s right to self-determination should be the concern of every individuals or groups and it is where projects and activities should focus on be it political, economic or social intervention”. He also clarified that TAP-G projects have general goal of accompaniment for the success of Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) but: “CSOs must not just look on the success of BTA alone, but rather if we are saying that we are for accompaniment on sustaining the gains of the peace process, then we must measure it in terms of achievements of self-determination of the Bangsamoro.“
Prof. More also reminded that: “These weaknesses in external evaluation are also being carried on in planning or for making proposals where they usually starts from what is lacking from them. The very basic strategy is to start with any project is to start from what resources are available, this is already an essence of exercising a self-determination process. It is in this manner that a project can start anytime even without assistance from outside. Also a means of attracting outside supports. And outside supports for the matter well develop and expand the available resources rather than starting to develop a non-existence matter“.
The data and information in this external evaluations gathered through workshops, interactions and interview with the participants will be collated, analyzed and make conclusions and recommendations by the External Evaluator and expected to be submitted by the end of July 2022.
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