As a result of its 2022 Regional Caucus, the CCP Kaisa Sa Sining (KSS) Mindanao Network conducted the LAMBIGIT Conference on May 17 to 20, 2023 in Davao de Oro.

The workshop was organized in partnership with the Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Colleges Marbel, Tagum City Council of Women, and Musikahan sa Tagum Foundation, to be facilitated by the Cultural Center of the Philippines Cultural Exchange Department (CCP CED).

Over 35 participants who are Indigenous Peoples Representatives (IPMRs) and Barangay Leaders (BLs) participated in the conference forum. The participating IPMRS and BLS were from 12 cultural communities all over Mindanao: Maguindanao, Sama, Blaan, Manobo, Higaonon, Subanen, Yakan, Mansaka, Tagakaulo, Liboganon, Kagan and Pagsabagan, along with 10 KSS representatives from Marawi, Iligan, Maguindanao, Pagadian, Zamboanga del Sur, Tagum, Lamitan, Agusan del Sur, Koronadal, and General Santos.

The Lambigit (which means collaboration, work together, network in local language) aims to gather local leaders representing several multi-cultural grassroots communities linked to the KSS Network and discuss the current conditions of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) of their respective communities.

During the workshop, the participants collectively crafted a Culture-and-Development Agenda toward the safeguarding of the ICH of the multicultural peoples of Mindanao, as well as strengthened collaboration and partnerships among the members of KSS network in Mindanao, the local barangay leaders, and IPMRs in safeguarding the identified priority ICH.

Lambigit was designed and facilitated by CCP Gawad Awardee and CCP KSS Mindanao Gador Awardee Nestor T. Horfilla of Davao City, assisted by KSS co-facilitators Renefe Tremedal, Cecile Mambuay, and Thallah Alava, Pepito Sumayan, and Lolito Pontillas.

The conference forum employed dialogical processes and participatory learning methodology that started with the presentations of case studies on IP and Moro initiatives on culture and development, focusing on the restraining and facilitating factors as well as the urgent need for sustainability. The case studies were drawn from actual documented experiences and findings from the focus group discussions (FGDs) conducted in three sites: Maguindanao (for BARMM), Davao (for multi-cultural communities), and Zamboanga (with representatives from Subanen and Yakan communities).

Three culture-ecology-based focused groups were formed (Zambasuli, BARMM, Eastern-Mindanao) to outline their area-based Collaborative Culture and Development Agenda as well as draft an Action Plan for Promoting Cultural Diversity and Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage of multi-cultural communities in Mindanao.

Among the envisioned concrete outputs of Lambigit were: (1) documented case studies and KSS recommendations that could be shared with culture-and-development agencies (NCCA, NEDA, NCIP, OPAPP, BARMM-BCPCH, and the Committee on Culture in Congress) for further discussion in aid for culture-policy formulation; (2) KSS Action-Agenda for Protecting Cultural Diversity to be presented for support and funding to NCCA, UNESCO-Philippines, and the Senate Committee on Culture; and (3) Agreed Action Plan (2023-2028) for KSS members to adapt and/or replicate for implementation.

Lambigit is the fourth collaborative project planned and implemented by the CCP KSS Mindanao for the period 2022 to 2023, with support from the CCP Congressional Initiatives Fund and facilitated by the CCP CED.