PBBM sees better response with PH, Japan space agencies collab

By Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos, Philippine News Agency

To help reduce landfill dependency and generate clean power for Metro Manila, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. met with senior executives of Kanadevia Corporation during his working visit to Japan to discuss a landmark Waste-to-Energy (WTE) project. (PCO Photo)

MANILA – The partnership with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is crucial in enhancing the Philippines’ disaster preparedness and in creating “smarter and safer” communities, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said on Saturday.

“We’re working with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), together with our very own Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA), to use space technology that helps protect and improve the lives of Filipinos,” Marcos said in an Instagram post.

“With better satellites, we can track typhoons and respond to disasters more quickly, help our farmers plan smarter, and keep our communities safer.”

Marcos issued the statement a day after his meeting with JAXA executives in Osaka, Japan.

Officials of JAXA and PhilSA signed their first memorandum of cooperation on June 11, 2021 to establish a comprehensive cooperation framework, further promoting and expanding Japan and the Philippines’ cooperation in the entire space development field.

Prior to PhilSA’s establishment in 2019, JAXA has collaborated with Philippine universities and research institutes on projects such as the use of satellite observation data in disaster prevention, launch of Philippine micro-satellite with the H-IIA rocket, and deployment of micro-satellite from International Space Station Japan Experimental module “KIBO” to satellite orbits.

Founded in 2003, JAXA was formed through the merger of three institutions — Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, National Aerospace Laboratory of Japan, and National Space Development Agency of Japan — to support the Japanese government’s overall aerospace development and utilization.

JAXA has been engaging in various activities to promote research and development in the aerospace field, with an emphasis on international cooperation, public relations and collaboration with industries and educational institutions.