The Youth Advocates Building Opportunities and Network in Governance (YABONG) began as an idea in the mere minds of young Mindanaoan leaders – a vision of leadership and nation-building. YABONG, now in its materialized and embodied nature, aims to address the lack of existing networks that envision a collective youth plan, promote partnership through application of sustainable development projects, and include the growing community of youth leaders in Mindanao.

With this, the fate of governance is seen with the expansion of youth cooperation in nation building. This is the place YABONG comes in. Yabong meaning prosperous in Filipino, reciprocally utilized with advancement, is utilized to depict the volume of youth pioneers in wide scope of backings. Like its actual meaning, YABONG brings the metaphorical resonance of growth– like a tiny sapling’s rise to become a fully-grown tree – to life by mainstreaming youth participation in governance.