Since the “Big One” can strike anytime, the only Filipino member of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction said that all business establishments in the country should be Disaster Risk Reduction resilient.
Recognizing the urgency of being prepared for a 7.2-magnitude earthquake, President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered for the immediate creation of a government agency– the Department of Disaster Risk Reduction and Management.
In response to the directive, real estate mogul Hans Sy exhorted all businesses to ensure that all their critical structures should not just follow the Local Building Code but also upgrade and retrofit in the interest of safety and protection of lives.
“An efficient and resilient critical infrastructure is for the overall well-being of a nation, its citizens, its economy,” said Sy, chairman of the Executive Committee of SM Prime Holdings, Inc.
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology Chief Renato Solidum has repeatedly warned that almost 50,000 lives in Metro Manila alone will be lost once a 7.2-magnitude hits the National Capital Region.
While nobody could be prepared adequately for an earthquake, Solidum said it is important that efforts are being undertaken to prepare for earthquakes.
“The enormity of the problem needs to be examined not only with response but also on the prevention side. No country can be ever ready if the focus will only be on the response side that is why it is important for us to focus on disaster preparedness and mitigation,” he added.
Sy said this move is also for the greater safety of the communities, customers and the general public and would translate to immeasurable returns.
Sy said that being DDR resilient should be seen as an investment such that “investing in resilience is definitely one of oue key strategic goals.”
“This is key in keeping the business stable and highly sustainable,” said Sy, the only Filipino member of the UNISDR Arise (Private Sector Alliance for Disaster Resilient Societies).
“We are here, we want to be part of the solution,” said Sy as he enjoins the private sector to effectively support and promote the benefits of DRR.
“SM Prime allocates 10 percent of capital expenditure for DRR in construction of buildings. By investing in resilience, we minimize vulnerability, better safeguard physical assets, reduce expense, and contribute to local government efforts, Ultimately, we are able to better protect lives, and have safer, healthier, happier communities,” he said.
Sy was a key panelist in the working session of the work session of the plenary that covered the topic: “Ensuring Risk Resilient Critical Infrasture” during the recent “The Global Platform for DDR” held in Cancun, Mexico, the world’s foremost gathering of leaders and major stakeholders on the implementation of Disaster Risk Reduction.
Sy joined the Philippine delegates led by Undersecretary Ricardo B. Jalad, executive director of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and administrator of the Office of Civil Defense, which is co-headed by Ambassador Evan P. Garcia.
There were about 6,000 global (international) delegates from the government, civil society and private sector who took part in the event.
The biennial event is the international venue to openly share experiences and best practices and to provide strategic guidance for carrying out the two global disaster risk reduction agreements—the 2005 and its post-2015 successor, the Sendal Framework.
Global leaders from various sectors of the government, civil society, the private sector and the academe convened last week in Mexico for the said event.
They have adopted the agenda of the Sendai Framework, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement into the next level.
Aside from Sy, the other panelist were global leaders Kunihiro YAMADA, DG, Water and Disaster Management MILT, Government of Japan; Rubem Hoflinger (Swiss Re); P.K. Mishra Prime Minister’s Office India; Michele Young, Asia Regional Shelter and Construction Adviser, Save the Children; Inés Gutierrez, Chief of National Defense and Disaster Risk Management Bureau, Ministry of Education of Peru who led the open discussion co-chaired by His Excellency Wais Ahmad Barmak, Minister of the State of Afghanistan.
