The Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP), through its Center for Governance – Local Governance and Development Office (CFG-LGDO), officially kicked off the Course on Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Local Government Units (LGUs) – Batch 1 on August 24, 2026, at O.D. Corpuz Hall 1, DAP Building, Pasig City. The intensive four-day capability-building initiative brought together 41 department heads, key functionaries, and technical staff from 13 LGUs.
Designed to introduce advanced concepts and applications of disruptive technologies in local governance, the course enables local officials to leverage basic AI-powered tools and frameworks to enhance public service delivery. As their primary target output, participants will develop an “LGU AI-Powered Proof-of-Concept”, a digitally tangible, functional prototype built via no-code or Vibe Coding to resolve specific local administrative bottlenecks.
Delivering the welcome remarks during the opening program, Director Armand Tristan R. Suratos of the DAP Center for Strategic Futures urged participants to ground their technological enthusiasm in data integrity, emphasizing that digital transformation requires more than simply adopting new tools.
“AI is only as powerful and reliable as the data that fuels it. True innovation in local governance does not just happen because we adopt new tools; it happens because we govern our data with integrity, ensuring it is clean, structured, and ethical. The goal of this course is not just to automate routine tasks, but to empower you to be aggressive in your development strategies. Let this be the start of a transformation where we don’t just ‘do’ government; we lead with precision, driven by data, for the Filipino people, “ Director Suratos highlighted.
The first day featured expert-led sessions aimed at laying a solid groundwork for local AI readiness. To begin, Atty. Jocelle Batapa-Sigue, Convenor of the Philippine ICT Innovation Networks and former Department of Information and Communications Technology Undersecretary, discussed leveraging national initiatives toward effective LGU AI readiness. Building on this vision, Chief Executive Officer Frances Claire San Juan-Tayco of CirroLytix Research Services tackled frameworks for ethical, accountable, and bias-free AI local governance. Finally, Project Manager Daniel G. Rosero from DAP-LGDO demystified the core AI lifecycle and workflow foundations for local administrative processes.
Day 1 concluded with LGU Sharing Sessions from championed LGUs integrating AI in public service delivery. The benchmarking segment highlighted real-world implementations, featuring Engr. John Randy B. Cabanes, Officer-in-Charge of the Pasig City Transportation Development and Management Office, who presented Pasig City’s Citizen-Centric Traffic and Infrastructure Monitoring System for Long-Term, Sustainable Urban Mobility and City Planning, alongside Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong of Baguio City, who presented Project MINERVA live via Zoom.
Over the remaining three days, participants will engage in design thinking workshops, prompt engineering exercises, and hands-on prototyping to finalize and present their AI proof-of-concept solutions.