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PMPI PREPARES FOR 3RD NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
The Philippine Misereor Partnership, Inc. (PMPI) is once again gearing up for the biggest event in the partnership: the National Assembly. This will be the 3rd National Assembly in the partnership. There is no exact date as yet for the 3rd National Assembly, but it has been agreed upon that the venue will be in Bohol with the Central Visayas cluster as host.
We had the first one in Olongapo City in 2003, and the second was in Cagayan de Oro City in 2006. In the first National Assembly, we had 14 resolutions (mostly organizational concerns). The second National Assembly brought out 21 resolutions (majority were on thematic concerns). The five thematic concerns are: 1) Poverty Eradication, 2) Good Governance; 3) Family Life and Gender; 4) Peace-building; and 5) Environment and IP Rights. How will things be in the 3rd National Assembly?
The PMPI National Assembly is convened every three years and is attended by four delegates from each cluster including the point person, the Co-Conveners, and invited bishops. However, in the 2nd National Assembly, we decided to expand the activities with Fair of Exhibits and Fair of Ideas. So we invited more members of partner organizations to participate in the week-long event. The Fair of Exhibits aimed at providing venue for exchange of materials in development work such as publications, modules for various training programs, samples of products, etc. The Fair of Ideas however, was a one-day activity where we simultaneously conducted forums, conferences, symposia, and dialogues on the thematic concerns. It was actually a prelude to the formulation of thematic resolutions that will be presented and deliberated on in the National Assembly.
As the Co-Conveners are still in the process of conceptualizing what to present to the next National Coordinating Committee (NCC) meeting regarding the structure of the 3rd National Assembly, the partner organizations and the clusters are enjoined to forward their suggestions to the PMPI Secretariat. How do we prepare for the National Assembly? This will be discussed in the cluster meetings. But meanwhile, please give a thought to how we can make the National Assembly more meaningful to us and to the poor people we seek to serve.