The Philippine Space Agency may become a reality
The Philippines will soon be able to see the universe with a clear perspective because the Senate has passed the Philippine Space Agency Act with an 18-0 vote on Monday which seeks to create the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) tasked to plan, develop, and promote the national space program.
According to a report on CNN Philippines, the Philippine Space Policy will embody the country’s goal of becoming a space-capable and space-faring nation within the next decade and will be the primary roadmap for space development. It will focus on national security and development, hazard management and climate studies, space research and development, space industry capacity building, space education and awareness, and international cooperation.
A space station will be constructed within the Clark Special Economic Zone in Pampanga and Tarlac will give 30 hectares of land to the project for its office and research facilities.
If the law takes effect, PhilSA will be given 2 billion a year budget which will be sourced from the the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA). For its initial operating costs, the agency will receive 1 billion from the national budget.
The agency will absorb the functions of the Philippine Space Science Education Program of the Science Education Institute that is currently under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), once it’s signed into law by President Duterte.
Posted on July 2, 2021 at 4:16 pm
While we have yet to have a reputable astronomy course in the Philippines, those interested in taking up astronomy or astrophysics can take up a science course in UP Diliman, such as applied physics to supplement their learning!
https://www.edukasyon.ph/schools/university-of-the-philippines-diliman-up-diliman-up