Skip to content
Contact Us

 Cagayancillo, Philippines 

Our pilot MPA project, anchoring a ~1.4 million hectare enhanced protected area in the Coral Triangle.

  • 1.4M hectares proposed enhanced MPA
  • 76% of known coral species found in the Coral Triangle
  • 2026 OMPP field deployment with WWF Philippines
_DSC4148-1
Cagayancillo Island sits northeast of the Tubbataha Reefs, one of the most biodiverse marine environments on the planet, and is the proposed centre of a ~1.4 million hectare enhanced MPA. WWF Philippines has built strong local momentum here, with island communities and the Philippine government aligned behind designation as part of the country's 30x30 commitments. The political will exists. What has been missing is the integrated evidence base to make designation happen.
Rarely does a conservation opportunity combine this level of biodiversity significance, community readiness, government alignment, and urgency.
iStock-1038059124

Why Cagayancillo matters for security-integrated conservation

The site encapsulates the security challenges our framework is designed to address:

  • Illegal fishing by foreign fleets operating in contested waters,

  • Critically limited coast guard resources

  • Funding gap left by the recent withdrawal of USAID scoping support. 

OMPP is working with WWF to fill that gap, deploying the BioSea Atlas to produce enforcement feasibility analysis and 3D biodiversity and climate resilience mapping. 

_DSC5992

On the ground

The OMPP team travelled to the region in March 2026, interviewing communities, meeting WWF field teams, and mapping the evidence gaps the BioSea Atlas is designed to fill. We are working with local communities to establish and fund a long-term, strengthened MPA with the Palawan government.