Disaster Risk management Public Seminar Series No.5 :The role of the private sector in building resilience to disasters

In many years, Japan and the World Bank have been working together to support Disaster Risk Management (DRM) efforts by disaster-prone developing countries. In April 2013, the Government of Japan announced Japan-World Bank Program for Mainstreaming DRM in Developing Countries. Subsequently, World Bank DRM Hub, Tokyo was established within the World Bank Tokyo Office. As part of its outreach and knowledge activities, Tokyo DRM Hub, the World Bank Tokyo Office and Japan Bosai Platform will co-organize the 5th public seminar titled “The Role of the Private Sector in Building Resilience to Disasters”.

Private enterprise is part of what makes societies resilient. As a provider of jobs and supplier of goods and services, a business that is prepared for disaster can help the community and country in which it operates bounce back from a crisis, and recover in the longer term. Business continuity planning is not only about protecting profit; it’s a critical strategy for communities to withstand shocks. Moreover, the private sector is an important supplier of knowledge, financial services and technology that contributes to effective disaster risk management (DRM). Information and communications technology (ICT) firms, for example, are making many pioneering efforts to apply ICT solutions to DRM challenges, such as providing timely early warning to the most remote and vulnerable communities.

A number of headline-grabbing disasters, such as the 2010 floods in Bangkok, Thailand, have highlighted the vulnerability of private industry, and its role in building a more resilient future. Floods not only destroyed physical infrastructure such as factories, warehouses and communication lines, they disrupted global supply chains in a cascading effect of impacts that rippled around the world. This is not just a problem for the companies involved; this is a challenge for economies and societies at large. Once the waters subside, the bigger challenge of reducing risks in developing countries is one that is not achievable by public funds alone. Private finance is an increasingly important factor in how infrastructure projects are realized and the role of public-private partnerships in achieving resilience at scale is critical to understand in any national DRM strategy.

This public seminar aims to explore the connections between the private sector and disaster resilience, and hear from Japanese experience in this field. Representatives from Japanese private sector will discuss the role of the private sector in building resilience in Japan and overseas.