As part of the EU Global Gateway Strategy, the CopPhil programme continues to strengthen the use of Earth Observation (EO) and geospatial data across Philippine public institutions through a comprehensive capacity-building programme. The programme combines the development of EO services with capacity building, including the establishment of a Copernicus Data Centre and the CopPhil Digital Campus.
Following four training sessions delivered in 2025 and early 2026, the CopPhil Technical Assistance (TA) component conducted an additional Local Government Unit (LGU) training in Cebu City (Region VII) from 2 to 5 March 2026. The course forms part of a broader series of thirteen training packages designed primarily for LGUs.
The training brought together 21 participants from municipal and city offices across Cebu and Bohol, as well as representatives from regional line agencies and the academic sector. The programme focused on the fundamentals of EO and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), the primary tool for processing and analysing satellite data. It is designed to support professionals working in land-use planning, agriculture, disaster risk reduction, forestry, and environmental management.
Organised by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), with technical support from the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA), the training combined theoretical sessions with hands-on exercises. Participants received practical guidance on accessing and using EO data, including PhilSA’s data repository, while DOST introduced the SARAI programme (Smarter Approaches to Reinvigorate Agriculture as an Industry in the Philippines).
The Cebu training also marked the full integration of updated modules from both PhilSA and DOST, further strengthening the technical depth and practical relevance of the programme.
Upcoming sessions are scheduled to take place in Tacloban (Region VIII), San Fernando (Region III), Legazpi (Region V, Bicol), and Davao (Region XI), continuing CopPhil’s support to sub-national institutions across the Philippines.
Implemented under the EU’s Global Gateway Strategy, CopPhil is managed by the European Union Delegation to the Philippines and implemented by the European Space Agency (ESA) in partnership with PhilSA and DOST.
Background Information
As a flagship and unique programme of the EU’s Global Gateway strategy, CopPhil is designed to harness digital resources and space technology for sustainable development and to support innovations in research and business in close cooperation with government partners.
CopPhil is managed by the European Union Delegation to the Philippines. It is implemented by the European Space Agency (ESA) in partnership with the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) and the Philippine Department of Science and Technology (DOST). In addition to the development of the Earth Observation pilot services, the activities of CopPhil include the establishment of a Copernicus Data Centre and IT infrastructure as well as awareness-raising and knowledge and skills transfer related to Copernicus data and information.
