Officials from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) paid a courtesy visit to Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) President Virgilio Julius P. Manzano, Jr., on October 14 to discuss the monitoring and mapping of Philippine Higher Education Institutions’ (PHEIs) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) initiatives through the university’s SDG Impact Dashboard (SDGID) project.

The delegation, led by Atty. Cinderella Filipina Benitez-Jaro, CHED - Executive Director IV, and Dr. Mary Sylvette Gunigundo, CHED - Director IV of the Office of Planning, Research, and Knowledge Management, met with the MMSU SDGID project team following the courtesy visit at the Office of the President.

The SDGID project team, led by Dr. Saturnina Nisperos, dean of the MMSU College of College of Computing and Information Sciences (CCIS), presented the initiative’s key metrics, performance indicators, and comparative data of PHEIs against counterparts in Southeast Asia and top global universities. Team members include Prof. James Patrick Acang, Prof. Luvee Hazel Aquino, Dr. Mee Jay Domingo, Prof. Arlene Gonzales, Prof. Wilben Christie Pagtaconan, Ms. Hazel Queen Sambo, Dr. Bjorn Santos, and Prof. Reynold Villacillo,.

Supported by CHED through its International Affairs Services, the SDGID initiative aims to monitor and map the SDG initiatives of MMSU and other Philippine HEIs through SDGID subscription, analyze SDGID data, develop strategic goals, and recommend policies based on institutional performance and best practices toward sustainable development. The initiative also enables benchmarking against global universities in research, internationalization, and sustainability.

For easier navigation and understanding of PHEI data on The Higher Education Impact Rankings (THEIR) performance, the SDGID project team also developed an interactive PHEIs SDG dashboard. This is envisioned to be utilized by CHED and HEIs for tracking sustainability performance.

In June this year, the project was presented at the 2025 Global Sustainable Development Congress in Istanbul, Turkiye. MMSU ranked 601-800th globally and third in the Philippines in the 2025 THEIR. (𝘗𝘑𝘗)