The Institute for Autonomy and Governance (IAG) will present its newly released independent assessment of governance in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) at an upcoming Ateneo Zamboanga-Mindanao Institute (AZMI) public forum titled “On the Making of the Bangsamoro: A Conversation on the Past 6 Years.” Scheduled for August 27, 2025, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 NN via Zoom, the forum will unpack the findings of IAG’s independent report on the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)-led transition and its implications for the future of autonomous governance in the region.

The forum is open to the public, and interested participants may pre-register via this link: https://bit.ly/BARMMReportForum.

Co-authored by political analysts David G. Timberman and Yasmira Moner, “The Bangsamoro Transition Authority and the Forging of an Autonomous Regional Government in Muslim Mindanao” offers a nuanced analysis of the challenges and achievements of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA). Drawing from over 50 interviews with government and civil society actors, extensive research, and a stakeholder validation workshop, the report explores the complexities of “rebel-to-ruler” transitions, multi-layered political identities, and institutional performance.

The report is available for download online, with a print edition forthcoming in August 2025. “This independent assessment highlights the successes within BARMM that must be sustained, the challenges that require attention, and the opportunities that the new regional parliamentary government alongside national government, the local government units and key stakeholders, must seize to fulfill the promise of peace and development enshrined in the peace agreements and public policies,” said Atty. Benedicto Bacani, Executive Director of IAG.

The AZMI forum is part of its annual series that explores critical questions and fosters collective understanding of Mindanao. This year’s theme, “Mindanao’s Past as Prologue,” draws inspiration from scholar Eric Tagliacozzo’s reflection in In Asian Waters: Oceanic Worlds from Yemen to Yokohama (2022): “Here—at the end of many known worlds, and the beginnings of others—the past may still be prologue.”