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UP Bangsa Development Initiative caravan held at UP Tacloban

16 August 2026

Sixty UP Tacloban faculty members, students, and research, extension, professional, and administrative staff attended the UP-Bangsa Development Initiative (UP-BDI) Caravan held at the Leyte-Samar Heritage Center on 19 August 2026.
A large group pose featuring event attendees, speakers, and organizers inside a high-ceiling hall. In the background, a digital screen displays "UP-Bangsa Development Initiative Caravan to UP Tacloban," flanked by the Philippine flag, the UP flag, and the iconic Oblation statue.
Participants, university officials, and guests gather for a group photo during the UP-Bangsa Development Initiative Caravan held at UP Tacloban.
UP-BDI Coordinator Asst. Prof. Maynard U. Usares of UP Mindanao presented an overview of the initiative, a flagship program of the University of the Philippines established under Administrative Order No. PAJ 23-74 and hosted by UP Mindanao. UP-BDI works closely with local government units, BARMM ministries, and communities across the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the Sulu Archipelago to foster sustainable peace and inclusive development through research, extension, and institutional partnerships. It is spearheaded by a Technical Working Group (TWG), which coordinates and strengthens collaboration between the UP System and BARMM to ensure inclusive, responsive, and sustained partnerships. As part of this effort, the TWG conducts UP-BDI caravans in constituent universities of the UP System to introduce the initiative, showcase its ongoing engagements, and identify opportunities to align and expand existing university projects in support of BARMM’s development priorities.
A man in a blue Barong Tagalog speaking at a podium with a microphone. Next to him, a digital display screen reads "UP-Bangsa Development Initiative Caravan to UP Tacloban."
UP-BDI Coordinator Asst. Prof. Maynard U. Usares of UP Mindanao presented an overview of the initiative
UP-BDI TWG member Mr. Martin Hilario I. Mapolon presenting the Telemedicine Project in Tawi-Tawi.
A speaker in a beige polo shirt gestures while presenting next to a digital display for "Project SARAI: Smarter Approaches to Reinvigorate Agriculture as an Industry in the Philippines."
Engr. Leo Neil T. Viado discussing the SARAi project
A woman stands at a podium speaking into a microphone, with display screens beside her reading "BARMM MINISTRIES EMERGING NEEDS FOR COLLABORATION."
TWG member Architect Minerva C. Rosel discussed the thematic areas of collaboration under the initiative
A speaker addresses the audience from a podium, standing in front of two screens displaying a slide titled "Engagement Protocols in the BARMM: The UP-BDI Experience."
Project assistant Mr. John Carlo S. Evardo presenting the protocols for engagement in BARMM
UP Tacloban’s Acting Chancellor Dr. Patricia B. Arinto welcomed the TWG members and caravan attendees. Engr. Leo Neil T. Viado discussed the Smarter Approaches to Reinvigorate Agriculture as an Industry in the Philippines (SARAi) project collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR-BARMM), and TWG member Mr. Martin Hilario I. Mapolon presented the Telemedicine Project in Tawi-Tawi. TWG member Architect Minerva C. Rosel discussed the thematic areas of collaboration under the initiative, and project assistant Mr. John Carlo S. Evardo presented the protocols for engagement in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
 

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