In recent years, FAO has been dedicating growing efforts to integrate anticipatory approaches into social protection systems to deliver timely assistance ahead of forecasted shocks and protect agricultural livelihoods. In 2024, FAO piloted the approach in the Philippines, in the region of Mindanao, which experiences periodic drought-related food insecurity. The ability to implement such actions and their effectiveness depend on the lead time, likelihood of impact and reliaibility of trigger models, among other factors. This study evaluates a range of climate and environmental indicators with the objective of improving the current trigger model used for drought activations.