Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao’s (BARMM) Minister Farserina A. Mohammad of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Tourism (MTIT) visited UP Mindanao on March 10, 2026, to sign a Memorandum of Agreement with Chancellor Lyre Anni Murao for the program, “Extending the Reach and Impact of the Livelihood Improvement through Facilitated Extension (LIFE) Model in Conflict-Vulnerable Communities in Mindanao.”
Minister Mohammad was joined at the signing ceremony by MTIT Bureau of Trade and Industry Director Hussein Biruar and MTIT Legal Officer Attorney Peter Paul Ayson, both of whom served as witnesses to the agreement.
The top photo shows the signed agreement presented by (seated, left-right) School of Management Dean Aurelia Luzviminda Gomez, Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs Maria Stella Salazar, Chancellor Lyre Anni Murao, Minister Farserina Mohammad, MTIT Bureau of Trade and Industry Director Hussein Biruar, and MTIT Legal Officer Attorney Peter Paul Ayson. Witnessing the ceremony are (standing, left-right) Ugnayan ng Pahinungod Mindanao Director Michael Gatela, College of Science and Mathematics Dean Cleto Nañola Jr., Research Director Marilou Montiflor, School of Management’s Asst. Prof. Rodgessa Lopez, and Extension and Community Service Director, Maynard Usares.
UP Mindanao Dean Aurelia Luzviminda Gomez, LIFE Project Leader, introduced the Program Phase 2 as having begun in Sultan Mastura Municipality with funding from the Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Council for Agriculture and Aquatic Resources Research and Development (DOST PCAARRD).
“The UP Mindanao team will seek to improve the livelihood of farmers in six conflict-vulnerable communities in South Cotabato, Maguindanao, and Zamboanga Sibugay provinces,” said Dean Gomez.
“The project also hopes to validate and expand the LIFE model through improved livelihood opportunities for the farmer groups, and to analyze the use of the LIFE model as an agricultural extension strategy for economic, social, gender, and partnership aspects, using the farmer and partner experiences in the previous program sites,” she said.
After the signing ceremony, Minister Mohammad said, “We appreciate the efforts and the initiative of the officials of the University of the Philippines Mindanao. I hope we can get our women, widows, and orphans organized to come on board with this agreement to improve and transform economic activity, and hopefully, there will be more industry and economic enterprise for the Bangsamoro. I hope that this is the beginning of a journey for UP Mindanao and the MTIT for more collaborations in the future and for economic progress in the Bangsamoro,” she said.
“Thank you for visiting UP Mindanao,” said Chancellor Murao. “You may have noticed that as you enter the campus, we have a Masjid. That is a symbol of UP Mindanao’s commitment to be part of the community,” she said. “We are hoping we may continue to explore other possibilities with MTIT. We have a technology transfer and business development office with many projects on translating ideas into real products, services, and businesses. We also have the gender laboratory for the agriculture and aquaculture value chains, as well as additional research we can offer for the Bangsamoro trade, industry, and culture. I hope you can open more doors for more discussions and collaborations,” she said.
The agreement with MTIT aligns with UP Mindanao’s strategic vision for its role in Mindanao as defined by the Amuma (caring) framework for a Regenerative and Transformative higher education institution, one that goes beyond conservation and sustainable development to actual regeneration and transformation of its environment and society.
[Text/photos by Rene Estremera]