Celebrate ASEAN Month 2026: Public Invited to Experience Southeast Asia Through Music, Dance, Arts, and Culture

MANILA, Philippines — The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), together with its ASEAN 2026 Philippines partners, invites the public to join the month-long celebration of ASEAN Month 2026, featuring a vibrant lineup of cultural showcases, performances, workshops, and community events that highlight the rich heritage and shared identity of Southeast Asia.

Following the successful momentum of the SULONG SEAPop Music and Culture Caravan, the celebration continues this August under the ASEAN Chairmanship theme, “Navigating Our Future, Together.” As ASEAN commemorates its 59th founding anniversary, Filipinos and visitors alike are encouraged to discover the traditions, creativity, and cultural diversity that unite the region’s eleven Member States.

As part of the celebration, participants who joined previous SULONG SEAPop Music and Culture Caravan events are encouraged to bring their SULONG SEAPop Passport to continue collecting stamps through the Stamp Rally at participating ASEAN Month activities. Those who complete the required stamps will have the chance to receive exclusive prizes, with winners to be announced during the culmination of the campaign in November 2026.

Throughout August, attendees can participate in a variety of free and accessible events across Manila, including:

August 6 - NCCA-Viet Nam bilateral meeting on strengthening cultural cooperation, Metropolitan Theater.

August 7 - Viet Nam Cultural Days: Vietnamese puppet workshop and ASEAN lectures at Centro de Turismo (open to all) 

August 7 - Vietnamese water puppet presentation at Fort Santiago.

August 8 - 59th ASEAN Day Anniversary and public Vietnamese water puppet performance at Fort Santiago, plus ASEAN Corner activities. (open to all)

August 9 - Launch of the ASEAN Cultural Center in Manila (ACCM) at the Metropolitan Theater, followed by Best of ASEAN Performing Arts (BOAPA).

August 10-31 -  ASEAN Corner at the Metropolitan Theater and Centro de Turismo, featuring cultural exhibits and activities. (open to all)

August 20 - Interagency ASEAN Month Celebration, bringing together government agencies in a showcase of regional cooperation and shared heritage.

Throughout ASEAN Month - SULONG SEAPop Passport Stamp Rally, where participants can collect stamps at participating activities and qualify for exclusive prizes.

Most public activities are free, with advance registration required for workshops with limited slots. The public and media are encouraged to follow the official ASEAN 2026 Philippines and NCCA channels for schedules, registration details, and updates. From cultural performances and exhibitions to workshops and lectures, the celebration offers diverse opportunities for audiences to experience the richness of Southeast Asian culture.

More than a celebration of shared heritage, ASEAN Month 2026 serves as a platform for strengthening bilateral ties, particularly between the Philippines and Viet Nam. Through cultural exchange and people-to-people engagement, the activities deepen mutual understanding, friendship, and cooperation between the two countries. The celebration also reinforces ASEAN’s shared identity and commitment to stronger regional partnerships as Member States navigate their future, together.

European Union at the Philippine Space Week 2026: ‘Navigating Tomorrow

 

The European Union (EU) joins for the third time the Philippine Space Week 2026, which will be held from 8 to 14 August under the theme ‘Navigating Tomorrow’.

The EU and the Philippines share a strong partnership under the Global Gateway, focusing on leveraging the expertise and technology of Copernicus, the Earth Observation (EO) component of the EU’s space programme, having established in the Philippines the first Copernicus Data Centre in South-East Asia, which is now becoming a regional centre.

To mark the celebration of the Philippine Space Week, the EU will contribute with trainings on Earth Observation:

• 5–6 August: EO land cover and forest mapping with the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA)

• 10 August: Ground motion monitoring with the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS)

• 12 August: Workshop on Strengthening EU–Philippines Earth Observation Collaboration; Lessons from CopPhil and EU-PH Digital Economy Package; Info Planning Session by EU and Finland

• 13 August: Crop mapping with the Bureau of Soils and Water Management of the Department of Agriculture (DA-BSWM)

On 9 August, come visit the EU Copernicus Booth, giving visitors the opportunity to learn more about the Copernicus Data Centre at Quantum Skyview, Gateway Mall 2, Araneta City. The EU and PhilSA will host a careers panel on Earth Observation with the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), aiming to encourage students and young professionals to explore opportunities in the Earth Observation and space sector in the country.

About EU Copernicus Philippines programme: Funded by the EU with a 10 million Euro grant (PHP 624 million), in partnership with the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), implemented by the European Space Agency (ESA), as part of the EU Global Gateway Strategy.

It supports the adoption of EU Earth Observation technology to help local public administration, institutions and companies prevent natural disasters, protect the environment and manage national resources. The project involves three elements: developing a Copernicus data centre in the Philippines, EO services showcasing the practical applications of Earth Observation data (ground motion monitoring; land cover, forests and crop mapping, and marine environment monitoring) and supporting the country to strengthen local capacities and promoting education in the field of Earth observation.

 

DSWD, partners to hold ASEAN Youth Summit 2026 in PICC

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), in partnership with the National Youth Commission (NYC), and support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Australian Government's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), will hold the ASEAN Youth Summit 2026 on August 5 and 6 at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City.

“As part of its chairship of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC), the DSWD wants to promote an enabling environment for young people to participate and strengthen their competencies to become responsible users of artificial intelligence (AI), new media, and other emerging technologies,” Asst. Secretary Irene Dumlao, the DSWD spokesperson, said on Tuesday (August 4).

The two-day summit aims to provide a platform to empower young people and strengthen their competencies in digital literacy, online ethics, and responsible innovation.

Asst. Secretary Dumlao said that while technology creates many opportunities, the DSWD also recognizes the challenges that come with it such as the proliferation of fake news, online scams, cyberbullying, privacy concerns, and the growing impact of social media on mental health.

“These are real issues affecting young people not only in the ASEAN region, but globally. To address these, we want to promote digital resiliency among the youth, with the ultimate goal of helping them distinguish facts from misinformation, protect themselves online, understand their digital rights, and use technology responsibly and ethically,” Asst. Secretary Dumlao stressed.

The Youth Summit will focus on the following key themes and discussion points: Critical Digital Literacy for an Informed ASEAN Youth; Digital Resilience and Mental Well-being in the Online World; Youth Empowerment in Digital Governance; and, Using Technology for Advocacy and Innovation.

Around 300 participants from various ASEAN Member States, including youth leaders, institutions, development partners, and representatives from local youth sectors are expected to attend the event.

The ASEAN Youth Summit is part of the major activities of the DSWD’s chairship of the ASCC, under the "Smart Youth and Innovation" thematic framework.

The event is also supported by the Social Protection, Inclusion, and Gender Equality (SPRING) Program, the Joint SDG Fund, and the Embassy of the United States of America. (AKDL)

 

Beyond FOI: Why Permission-Based Transparency Fails the Public

Imagine an ordinary citizen trying to track flood-control spending in their province. They want to cross-examine project costs, contractors, locations, and completion rates — not as professional investigative journalists, but as community members whose neighborhoods submerge under water every monsoon season despite billions in public allocations.

Yet, under the current Freedom of Information (FOI) paradigm, accessing this data remains an uphill battle. In September 2025, a citizen requested flood-control project data from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in structured CSV or Excel format. The official response noted that no flood-control map database was available on the agency’s website, leaving the requester with no option but to appeal. In another case, the DPWH approved a project-list request — only to instruct the citizen to check their private email for the data.

According to Ann Cuisia, Founder and CEO of TraXion Tech, this dynamic highlights a structural flaw in how the government handles public records. She emphasizes that transparency should not depend on belonging to a media organization or having the resources to fight through bureaucracy. When people have no data, they have no practical tool to question power, and corruption thrives where evidence is hardest to see.

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Under traditional permission-based transparency mechanisms like standard FOI, a citizen must file an explicit request, undergo agency review, navigate processing wait periods or potential fees, and ultimately receive a one-time static document or private email transmission. In contrast, a modern disclosure-by-default framework hosts centralized open data portals publishing standardized CSV files, JSON feeds, and open APIs, which enables instant downloads and continuous analysis for any member of the public without administrative friction.

The Pitfalls of Permission-Based Transparency
The core issue lies in permission-based transparency. Even when public records are eventually released, they rarely form a searchable, reusable public dataset. The next citizen seeking the exact same information must start the bureaucratic loop all over again — registering, submitting government identification, navigating agency jurisdictions, and waiting for approval.

In addition, while filing an FOI request is legally free, several citizens requesting government-held datasets have reported being redirected to third-party services that require processing fees. This raises a fundamental question about why citizens should pay twice for non-confidential data that was already collected, processed, and maintained using public tax funds.

Disclosure by Default: The Global Standard
Other nations have long transitioned to proactive disclosure by default. In the United Kingdom, all Cabinet Office spending transactions exceeding £25,000 are automatically published as downloadable CSV files. On a broader scale, public procurement notices globally are increasingly published in standardized JSON via open APIs under the Open Contracting Data Standard. This enables researchers, civic technologists, and ordinary residents to analyze government spending continuously without seeking permission, submitting ID, or explaining why they need the data.

The Philippines actually adopted open data principles as far back as 2015, mandating that government datasets be publicly accessible by default, machine-readable, openly licensed, and regularly updated. While the policy framework exists on paper, the administrative culture and enforcement mechanisms have lagged far behind.Southeast Asians & Pacific Islanders

The Real-World Cost of Broken Data
This lack of structured data carries severe real-world consequences. Without standardized, machine-readable records, watchdog organizations and citizens cannot easily run automated checks to flag duplicated projects across agency dockets, unusual pricing anomalies or bid padding, recurring contractors despite poor performance histories, and full disbursements for incomplete or ghost infrastructure projects.

“Public records should be open unless a specific lawful exception applies, such as national security, personal privacy or an ongoing investigation. FOI must remain available for exceptional requests. But it should never substitute for government’s duty to publish,” Cuisia added. By Robert "Bob" Reyes

Transparency Hampers Public Access to Government Data, Says Tech Executive

Citizens seeking to monitor how public funds are spent continue to face significant obstacles under the country’s current Freedom of Information (FOI) system, according to Ann Cuisia, founder and chief executive officer of TraXion Tech, who is urging the government to adopt a “disclosure by default” approach to public records.

Cuisia pointed to recent cases involving requests for Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood-control project data, where citizens encountered limited access to structured information. In one case in September 2025, a request for flood-control project data in CSV or Excel format was met with a response stating that no flood-control map database was available on the agency’s website, prompting the requester to file an appeal. In another instance, a request for a project list was approved, but the data was sent through a private email instead of being made publicly accessible.

Ann Cuisia, founder and chief executive officer of TraXion Tech

She said the current permission-based FOI process requires citizens to file individual requests, wait for agency approval, and receive one-time document releases that are often difficult to reuse or analyze. As a result, every new requester seeking the same information must repeat the entire process.

Cuisia argued that transparency should not depend on a person’s affiliation with the media or their ability to navigate government bureaucracy. “When people have no data, they have no practical tool to question power, and corruption thrives where evidence is hardest to see,” she said.

She advocated for a proactive disclosure system in which government agencies routinely publish standardized datasets, including CSV files, JSON feeds, and open application programming interfaces (APIs), through centralized open-data portals. Such a system, she said, would allow the public to download and analyze government information without filing formal requests.

Cuisia also noted concerns that while FOI requests are generally free of charge, some citizens seeking government-held datasets have reportedly been referred to third-party services that impose processing fees. She questioned why taxpayers should shoulder additional costs for non-confidential information that was collected and maintained using public funds.

She cited international practices, including the United Kingdom’s publication of Cabinet Office spending transactions exceeding £25,000 in downloadable CSV format and the growing adoption of the Open Contracting Data Standard, which makes procurement information available through standardized JSON files and open APIs.

Although the Philippines adopted an Open Data policy in 2015 promoting machine-readable, openly licensed, and regularly updated government datasets, Cuisia said implementation has remained inconsistent due to gaps in enforcement and administrative practices.

According to Cuisia, the absence of structured and publicly accessible datasets limits the ability of citizens, researchers, and watchdog groups to detect duplicate projects, pricing irregularities, recurring contractors with poor performance records, and payments for incomplete or non-existent infrastructure projects.

“Public records should be open unless a specific lawful exception applies, such as national security, personal privacy, or an ongoing investigation. FOI must remain available for exceptional requests. But it should never substitute for government’s duty to publish,” she said.

By: Bob Reyes 

Health authorities, families unite through art to champion nutrition and healthier food environments

As unhealthy diets fuel preventable diseases across the country, families, health authorities, and advocates used art to call for change—painting a mural that highlights the urgent need for sustainable food systems and stronger food and nutrition policies.

Held in the Quezon Memorial Circle last July 25-26, the two-day event opened with a community mural, painted collaboratively by officials from the National Nutrition Council (NNC), Department of Health, and the Quezon City Government, alongside health advocates, parents, and children. The mural became a living symbol of the collective vision for a healthier food environment—one that promotes sustainability and protects families from noncommunicable diseases.

During the mural presentation, Health Undersecretary Albert Domingo, newly appointed Executive Director of NNC, likened the effort to unlocking a vision together: 

“May genie’s lamp dahil kailangang kaskasin nang kaunti para lumabas ang ating pinapangarap [na healthy food environment]. Ang mga dahon sa mga sanga ng puno ay kamay ng iba’t ibang tao na siyang magbibigay ng buhay sa ating adbokasiya.”

The second day of the event culminated in a healthy market fair, where farmer-cooperatives and vendors supported by the Quezon City Government and the Department of Agriculture - Agribusiness, Marketing, and Consumer Affairs (DA-AMAS) showcased an abundant selection of fresh produce.

To further promote sustainable food systems, the DA-Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) distributed free seeds and seedlings, encouraging families to grow their own nutritious food at home. Together, these efforts highlighted the vital role of local producers and government support for an access to healthier, more affordable options.

Alongside the merchants, the fair also featured free blood pressure screenings from the Philippine Society of Hypertension, a nutrition information hub from the NNC, a health corner by Quezon City Health Department, and an exhibit by ImagineLaw highlighting the sodium content of common Filipino food items. 

Participants also engaged with the Pagkain Check Nutrition Calculator, an interactive tool that helps identify products high in sugar, sodium, or unhealthy fats.

Atty. Mikhail Laurence Millan of ImagineLaw reinforced the advocacy for healthier food environments: “Nutrition ang first defense natin laban sa mga sakit. Para maprotektahan ang mga pamilya, kailangan natin ng isang healthy food environment where unhealthy products carry labels, children are shielded from aggressive food marketing, at ang high-sodium items ay reformulated para hindi maging health risk.”

Quezon City’s Chief Nutritionist Jirah Sideco highlighted the city’s leadership in embedding nutrition and sustainability into governance, emphasizing that policies will continue to be strengthened to protect families.

She also urged fellow local governments to act decisively: “Local governments have the power to transform our communities. Ang lungsod ang pinakamalapit sa tao, and our policies help shape what people see, what they choose, and they help people realize kung ano ba talaga ang isang healthy food environment.”

Building on these commitments, Usec. Domingo called for collective action. “Maraming tumulong sa paggawa ng mural na ‘to na hindi kasama sa program organizers—mahalaga ito dahil kayo rin po ang inaasahan nating lahat na sama-samang magtulak ng ating adbokasiya. [Patuloy nating] pag-usapan ang isang healthy food environment para sa ating bayan.”

DSWD presents proposed ‘ASPECT Framework’ at 48th meeting of ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management in Bandung, Indonesia

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), representing the Philippines, highlighted the country’s disaster resilience initiatives during the 48th Meeting of the ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management (ACDM) on Tuesday (July 28) in Bandung, Indonesia.

During the ACDM meeting, Undersecretary Diana Rose Cajipe of the DSWD’s Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) presented the draft ASEAN Strategic Protocol for Emergency and Comprehensive Transformation (ASPECT) Framework, a proposed region-wide framework to improve humanitarian response and coordination during disasters among the ASEAN region.

“ASEAN today faces an increasingly complex risk environment characterized by overlapping climate, health, and humanitarian crises. While our existing mechanisms have significantly strengthened regional cooperation, recent experiences demonstrate the need for faster, more anticipatory, and more coordinated regional action. In this context, there is an opportunity to reinforce the vision of ‘One ASEAN, One Response’ by exploring more predictable, science-informed, and pre-arranged modalities of regional support, while fully respecting national sovereignty and host-state leadership,” Undersecretary Cajipe said on Tuesday.

The ASPECT Framework is a significant initiative under the Philippines' ASEAN 2026 Chairship, supported by the ASEAN leaders during the 48th ASEAN Summit Cebu last May.

Undersecretary Cajipe said the framework will enhance the existing operational mechanisms under the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER) and strengthen the ‘One ASEAN, One Response’ vision by transforming disaster management towards a more automated, science-driven, and proactive response model.

The ASPECT Framework is built on five strategic priorities: regional interoperability, optimized coordination, anticipatory action, community-based risk management, and inclusive assistance focused on protection during disasters, all while upholding national sovereignty and ASEAN centrality.

“Specifically, ASPECT seeks to strengthen existing instruments through anticipatory and science-based triggers; enhanced interoperability; improved coordination mechanisms; and more integrated regional preparedness arrangements. In essence, ASPECT serves as an operational layer that enhances ASEAN's collective ability to anticipate, prepare for, and respond to increasingly complex disasters,” Undersecretary Cajipe pointed out.

Undersecretary Cajipe said the Philippines will host the ASEAN High-Level Meeting on the ASPECT Framework on October 7-8 to further advance the initiative.

“Through this broad and balanced participation, the meeting aims to ensure that the ASPECT Framework is shaped through inclusive, technical, and Member State-led dialogue,” Undersecretary Cajipe said. (YADP)