Developing guidelines on disaster-resilient workspace

In the Asia and Pacific region, the frequency of disasters is increasing with growing number of people living in vulnerable areas. The realization that long term impacts of disaster situations to economic development, growth and poverty reduction can be reduced or eliminated by strengthening the resilience of communities point towards the critical need to develop comprehensive disaster risk reduction and management strategies. The private sector involvement in disaster risk reduction is key in achieving a solid integrated approach. This remains particularly important in the developing world where "the private sector provides livelihoods, [...] is a key service provider" (DFID, 2006) and the number one source of jobs. Businesses also benefit from local knowledge, expertise, skills and resources which may provide a strong input in contextualizing preparedness efforts made on a community level. The humanitarian, non-profit and public sectors have traditionally been the ones seen as responsible in responding to disaster situations and leading recovery efforts. These have often looked to the private sector principally as a source of donations. There is however increasing recognition that the role of the private sector should extend much beyond that of providing funding. In order to truly increase resilience of communities and economies, an integrated approach, including all players of society and economy, is required in both preparing for an disaster situation and responding to it. The private sector may play an active role in sharing expertise and capacities, developing an enabling environment for recovery and minimizing the long term impacts of a hazard. To this extent business membership organizations (BMO) provide an important but underutilized channel for resilience building efforts. Given that BMOs are intended to represent and provide services that meet the needs of their members, the potential role they should and can have in building enterprise resilience should be highlighted in seeking a fully integrated approach to preparing and responding to disaster situations. Additionally, as job creation remains key in stimulating rapid economic recovery in the aftermath of a disaster, BMOs can also play a substantive part in the process of matching employees with jobs and jobs with skilled personnel.

Project symbol

PHI/14/50/ROK

Admin unit

RO-Asia and the Pacific

Start date

01/08/2014

End date

30/04/2015

Total allocation

60000

Total expenditure

Status

Closed

59711

Development Partners

Republic of Korea, Ministry of Labour

Country/Countries

Philippines

Outcomes

Strong and representative employers' and workers' organizations