EU-PH digital economy program to boost connectivity, satellite data access, 5G skills, cybersecurity

• (Center) Head of Cooperation from the European Union Delegation to the Philippines Dr. Marco Gemmer, PhilSA Ad Interim Director General Gay Jane P. Perez. Ph.D., and Deputy Director General for Space Operations, Infrastructure, and Industry Denis F. Villorente with members of the steering committee 

The European Union and the Philippines are advancing a joint digital economy initiative aimed at improving internet connectivity, expanding access to satellite data, strengthening 5G regulatory capabilities, and enhancing cybersecurity expertise.

The Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) announced that implementing partners of the EU-Philippines Digital Economy Package held their first Project Steering Committee Meeting on June 4, marking another step in the rollout of the multi-agency digital cooperation program.

The initiative seeks to help position the Philippines as a regional digital hub by improving bandwidth connectivity and ensuring reliable access to Copernicus Earth observation data, which can support government decision-making on socio-economic planning, disaster response, and climate action.

The program will also focus on upskilling personnel in 5G regulation and cybersecurity while complementing existing capacity-building efforts under the National Copernicus Capacity Support Action Programme (CopPhil).

According to PhilSA, the project adopts a data-driven approach to strengthen disaster management and climate resilience through wider use of satellite information.

The EU-PH Digital Economy Package is backed by a €20 million contribution from the European Union, with additional funding of €2 million from Finland and €600,000 from France.

It forms part of the EU’s Global Gateway strategy, which aims to strengthen smart, secure, and sustainable digital, energy, and transport links while supporting health, education, and research systems in partner countries.

The partnership was formalized in 2025 through a cooperation agreement signed by EU Ambassador H.E. Massimo Santoro and Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go.

PhilSA and the EU Delegation to the Philippines are leading the implementation of the initiative alongside the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), and the Department of National Defense-Office of Civil Defense (DND-OCD), in collaboration with European partners including Expertise France, Climate KIC, HAUS Finland, and the foreign ministries of France and Finland.