Your Excellency President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., our partners from JAXA and MEXT, distinguished heads of space agencies, delegates, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. 

The theme of the 31st Session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum, “Empowering the Region through Space Ecosystems in Action,” underscores the importance of connecting institutions, technologies, and people to sustainably access space for addressing shared challenges and supporting long-term development. 

In the Philippines, we recognize the value of space in enhancing data-informed governance towards building resilience against the impacts of climate change and natural hazards, and reinforcing key sectors in agriculture, environmental conservation and maritime security. At the same time, we acknowledge that space data alone cannot address all these challenges. Developing capabilities to use this data with ground measurements and AI models and leveraging expertise and experience of advanced space actors would help us develop the right tools, services and solutions. 

This is embodied in APRSAF’s long-standing role of providing an inclusive platform for collaboration on peaceful and practical uses of space, through the working groups and initiatives on Satellite Applications, Enhancement of Space Capability, Space Frontier, Space Education for All, Space Policy and Law, and Space Industry—whose sessions this week demonstrate the region’s commitment to building a space ecosystem that is responsible and responsive to societal needs. 

For the Philippines, this collaborative approach resonates with a cultural value deeply rooted in our identity: Bayanihan, the spirit of collective effort and mutual support. Applied to our work in space, it becomes Space Bayanihan, where expertise and resources reinforce one another across institutions and borders. Space Bayanihan is an approach we hope to share across the Asia-Pacific region, because complex missions thrive on cooperation. 

And today, we are making history. Inside this hall, on this island of Mactan, Cebu, we have the President of the Republic of the Philippines, astronauts, space agency heads, scientists, engineers, government personnel, CEOs, lawyers, teachers, researchers, and high school students, with one common purpose—pushing the boundary of science, technology, and innovation in reaching the final frontier and harnessing the power of space to improve lives here on Earth. Collectively, representing 40 countries across Asia-Pacific and the world, we are witnessing the good side of humanity. Amidst the challenges that our region and the world face, and Cebu province is no stranger to that with the devastations brought by recent typhoons and earthquakes, what we see here is hope and the small part that our space community brings. 

The Philippines is ready to be an open and reliable partner who listens, shares, and builds with others. 

To affirm our country’s commitment, we are honored to have the President with us today.  

Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the Republic of the Philippines, His Excellency Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. 

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Watch the livestream replay here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8cBVITOL2M