Contributing via Business Strengths, DRR Innovation and Partnerships
Kokusai Kogyo commits to innovating and delivering geospatial information technology solutions that contribute to building resilience to disasters and accelerating Sustainable Development. We commit to make accessible these solutions not only in Japan, but across Asia and beyond.
Description
Kokusai Kogyo (KKC) is a geospatial information based company headquartered in Japan, committed to creating resilient communities and working to realize the SDGs. KKC has provided government agencies, local authorities and private sector clients across Japan a wide range of technical services and solutions in energy, social infrastructure, environmental protection, disaster risk reduction and so on for over 70 years. KKC’s development experts and professionals have brought expertise developed through our work in Japan to developing countries through technology transfer and capacity building projects for over 50 years. This SFVC by KKC is based on a commitment made by KKC’s Chairperson and CEO Sandra Wu in 2017, during her intervention as panelist of the Working Session “International Cooperation in Support of the Sendai Framework Implementation” at GP17 (see video to right, 0:53 -). Sandra committed to make KKC's geospatial-based solutions widely available in Asia, to begin to reach beyond our traditional client base in Japan, in order to demonstrate that private-private cooperation based on business relationships can complement government-led international cooperation schemes and accelerate the implementation of the Sendai Framework. Thus KKC commits to innovating and delivering geospatial information technology solutions that contribute to building resilience to disasters and accelerating Sustainable Development, and we commit to make these solutions available not only in Japan, but across Asia and beyond.
Did the Sendai Framework change or contribute to changes in your activities/organization? If so, how?
Yes. Engaged with UNISDR's private sector group, Kokusai Kogyo (KKC) had a front-row experience throughout the formulation and adoption of the Sendai Framework. This generated a strong belief among KKC's upper management that businesses must also mainstream the 2015 global agendas into their very core. By late 2015, KKC's corporate strategy and mid- and long- term plans had been overhauled to directly address disaster resilience, Sustainable Development and Climate Action. In 2016, KKC's parent group, Japan Asia Group, also executed a group-wide re-alignment to the Sendai Framework, SDGs, and Climate Change under a new corporate mission "Save the Earth, Make Communities Green".
What led you to make this commitment/initiative?
What was your position before making this Voluntary Commitment / prior to the Sendai Framework?
Since 2011 Kokusai Kogyo (KKC) has spoken collectively for the private sector, especially from 2013 to 2015 when KKC's Chairperson and CEO Sandra Wu was Chair of UNISDR's private sector group; KKC's individual commitment was rarely discussed until Sandra stepped down from that role. The question of how KKC as one business may contribute to the implementation of the Sendai Framework was always under consideration, and resulted in a new corporate strategy in 2015 (see answer to question immediately above), a related statement at COP22/CMP12: High-Level Meeting on Climate Change in 2016, and the GP17 Working Session statement in 2017 (see description of commitment above).
Deliverables and Progress report
Deliverables
Deliverables are the end-products of the initiative/commitment, which can include issuance of publications or knowledge products, outcomes of workshops, training programs, videos, links, photographs, etc.
We commit to identifying and establishing business relationships with a wider range of private sector partners in Asia, towards the purpose of bringing our DRR solutions to governments and communities in the partners’ geographic areas of operation. For 2018-2021, we target potential partners that will help us bring our DRR/SDGs/Climate Change solutions to VIP (Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines) countries, plus Taiwan, Singapore, and Japan. Outputs would be presented as periodically updated reports including list of corporate news releases reporting on new business partnerships.
We commit to work with, and through, our partners described in Deliverable #1 to identify, if necessary innovate and develop, and provide solutions for local authority and local community clients in VIP (Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines) countries, plus Taiwan, Singapore, and Japan. We will design, whenever possible, solutions that encourage coherence between, and coherent action to tackle DRR, SDGs, and Climate Change, and build disaster resilience in communities as a foundation of Sustainable Development. Outputs would be presented as periodically updated reports including list of business case studies and summaries describing milestone projects.
Porgress report
By our last update in January 2022, we reported Deliverable 1 - FORMING PRIVATE-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS TO DELIVER DRR/SDGs/CLIMATE SOLUTIONS complete and the initiation of Deliverable 2 - DELIVERING DRR/SDGs/CLIMATE SOLUTIONS FOR LOCAL LEVEL ACTION with one output. However, as a result of major corporate restructuring in the months since, these partnerships are no longer part of our operations. We request to close this SFVC at this time, due to these outstanding circumstances.
By our last update in January 2022, we reported Deliverable 1 - FORMING PRIVATE-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS TO DELIVER DRR/SDGs/CLIMATE SOLUTIONS complete and one output for Deliverable 2 - DELIVERING DRR/SDGs/CLIMATE SOLUTIONS FOR LOCAL LEVEL ACTION in one country (Singapore).
Organizations and focal points
Implementing Organization(s)
Focal points
