Citizens in the southern Philippines are to vote today on a proposal to give the region greater autonomy, a move that the central government says will help end decades of violent conflict.
More than 2.8 million residents of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao are expected to vote on a law creating an expanded region called Bangsamoro, which provides more funding, a bigger revenue share and full control of its resources.
Another round of voting is to be held on Feb. 6.
Some local politicians are opposing the move, refusing to cede control of their areas to a new political entity that will control the region.
It is the culmination of two decades of talks aimed at ending four decades of insurgency that has killed killed tens of thousands of people and stifled the development of the Philippines’ second-biggest island, which has mineral deposits worth an estimated US$300 billion.
“The approval of this law will signal peace and hopefully the Bangsamoro can hitch on the coming Mindanao boom in investments,” the head of the region’s investment board, Ishak Mastura, said by telephone.
The region is targeting more than 2 billion pesos (US$38 million) in investments to come in this year following the autonomy vote, he said.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has campaigned for the new region, saying it will help him deliver on his election pledge to bring peace and wealth in the southern Mindanao island.
The region is on Duterte’s home island and on Friday in the southern city of Cotabato, he pledged to amend economic provisions in the constitution once the vote had passed.
“Your approval of this law will not only serve as an expression of your desire to end more than half a century of armed struggle in the region,“ Duterte said. “It will also serve as a testament to your determination to bring genuine peace and development in Muslim Mindanao.”
There will still be challenges for investment even if the plebiscite favors autonomy, Mastura said, including poor infrastructure and high power costs.
The region has the highest poverty rate in the Philippines, with more than half of its population considered poor, based on a Philippine government survey in 2015.
Despite its problems, the autonomous Muslim region has shown some promise. Its economy grew to a record 7.3 percent in 2017, becoming the fifth-fastest growing region and beating national economic growth of 6.7 percent.
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