A parliament member of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is seeking the establishment of the Bangsamoro Commission on Population Management and Development (BCPD) to achieve and sustain progress through a well-managed population.

Parliament member Dr. Kadil Sinolinding Jr. filed Monday the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Bill No. 110, otherwise known as the BCPD Act of 2023, to ensure an improved implementation of the Philippine population management program in the region.

“A well-managed population achieves population processes and outputs that are consistent, complementary, and facilitative to the region’s socioeconomic and human development,” Sinolinding, an ophthalmologist by profession, said.

Under the proposal, the BCPD will be in charge of recommending, planning, coordinating, executing, and monitoring population management and development policies and programs in the region. It will be an attached agency of the Bangsamoro Planning and Development Authority (BPDA),

The BCPD will have the same structure as the Population Commission (PopCom), supervised by the National Economic and Development Authority, for efficient mechanisms from the national to the local level.

Once enacted into law, the BCPD office will also create the Population Management and Development Program (PMDP), in the context of existing cultural norms and religious convictions of the people, to ensure sustainable human and socioeconomic development and better health outcomes in the region.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) 2020 Census Population and Housing results, BARMM recorded a 4.4 million population, or 3.26 percent increase from 2.89 percent in 2015. (PNA)