CEBU CITY (PIA) — Filipino and Timorese students, faculty and researchers will have more opportunities to study, train and work together under a renewed higher education agreement between the Philippines and Timor‑Leste.
Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chairperson Shirley Agrupis and Timor‑Leste Vice Prime Minister Mariano Assanami Sabino Lopes signed the agreement during the Higher Education Partnerships Conference 2026 in Cebu City.
The agreement updates a 2009 accord under which about 200 Timorese students have studied in Philippine institutions.
Agrupis said it gives CHED and Philippine colleges and universities a platform to expand cooperation with Timor‑Leste in quality assurance, instruction, student and faculty mobility, manpower development, joint research and community engagement.
She called the partnership a “go signal” for Philippine institutions to work with Timor‑Leste as the country builds its higher education system.
The agreement also opens opportunities for Filipino students to visit Timor‑Leste for immersion and other academic activities, Agrupis said.
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