DepEd launches AI-powered platform to help schools prepare for disasters

The Department of Education (DepEd) has launched nationwide an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered platform that uses satellite imagery and geospatial data to help schools track hazards and respond to disasters before they disrupt classes.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara led the rollout of Project LIGTAS+, or Learning Institution Geohazard Tracking and Assessment for Safety, which integrates AI, satellite imagery, geospatial analytics and school-level risk data.

The platform is designed to turn scattered hazard information into real-time, actionable data for education officials and school leaders.

Angara stressed that DepEd needs to move beyond simply responding to disasters after they occur.

“We cannot solely rely on our resilience, especially when it comes to education. We have to make sure that our schools are prepared, ready to respond, and ready to move forward with learning, whatever challenges may come,” Angara said.

He noted that knowing that a hazard exists is no longer enough.

"It is not enough to know that there is a hazard. We need to know where it is, who will be affected, how great the risk is, and what we need to do before a hazard becomes a crisis," Angara said.

From hours to five-minute situation reports

DepEd said Project LIGTAS+ can significantly speed up the department’s emergency response.

During a demonstration, the platform was shown to reduce the preparation of official situation reports from hours to around five minutes.

It can also track rainfall, extreme heat, wind speeds and temperature spikes in real time, allowing authorities to identify developing hazards and respond before conditions worsen.

Angara said the system would provide schools with more actionable information.

"Through LIGTAS+, with its artificial intelligence-powered features, we will have clearer and more actionable information to support our schools," he said.

The rollout comes as disasters continue to disrupt learning nationwide. DepEd cited data from the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) showing that schools lose an average of 40 to 50 instructional days each year because of natural hazards.

Beyond emergency response, DepEd said LIGTAS+ can help identify geohazard risks at the school level and inform longer-term decisions, including the design and construction of more disaster-resilient school buildings.

The data may also be used to strategically preposition emergency learning packages, including Edukahon, closer to communities identified as being at high risk ahead of typhoons and other disasters.

Project LIGTAS+ was developed by DepEd’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Service (DRRMS) together with the Education Center for AI Research (ECAIR).

The nationwide rollout was marked by a commitment signing between DepEd and partner agencies, including the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), PAGASA, PHIVOLCS and the UP Resilience Institute.

DepEd said policy issuances and capacity-building activities are underway to support the adoption of the platform across public schools nationwide.— MCG, GMA News