The Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) and the National Commission on Space Activities (Comisión Nacional de Actividades Espaciales, CONAE) of the Argentine Republic signed an agreement for cooperation on the peaceful uses of outer space on the occasion of the 75th year of diplomatic ties between the Philippines and Argentina. The ceremony was part of the 5th Philippines-Argentina Bilateral Consultation Mechanism held at Diamond Hotel Philippines, City of Manila, on Tuesday.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Philippines and Argentina covers the following areas of cooperation: Earth Observation from space; use of satellite information for studies on the environment, natural resources, and emergency management; satellite systems development and their applications; ground infrastructure for space systems and their applications; space education and training; and space industry promotion.

PhilSA Director General Joel Joseph S. Marciano, Jr. signed the agreement, witnessed by Mr. Claudio Javier Rozencwaig, Undersecretary for Foreign Policy from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of the Argentine Republic.

“Our cooperation agreement with Argentina marks another milestone in our efforts to expand and deepen our ties with other space-capable nations. Through the partnership with CONAE we open a new and exciting frontier in our countries’ long and rich relations and additional opportunities for growing our local space ecosystems,” Dr. Marciano said.

Activities under the areas of cooperation between PhilSA and CONAE include planning, development, and implementation of space projects and programs, exchange of space-based information, sharing of ground support for satellite missions, information and knowledge sharing, and exchange of scientists and technical personnel.

Before the bilateral meeting on 25 April, the Argentine delegation paid a courtesy visit to PhilSA and toured the Philippine Earth Data Resource Observation (PEDRO) ground station at the Department of Science and Technology-Advanced Science and Technology Institute (DOST-ASTI) premises and research facilities at the University of the Philippines Diliman University Laboratory for Small Satellites and Space Engineering Systems (ULyS³ES) on 24 April.

PhilSA officials and Argentine delegates at the PEDRO ground station in DOST-ASTI on 24 April 2023

Aside from CONAE, PhilSA has existing space agreements with the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and United Arab Emirates Space Agency (UAESA). PhilSA also signed on to the Space for Climate Observatory, a global initiative to promote and facilitate the use of space technology for climate action led by the Centre National D’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), the national space agency of France.