Key findings from the 9th APEC Senior Disaster

Management Officials Forum

Building disaster
resilience under a
‘new normal’
September 22 - 23, 2015
Iloilo, the Philippines

www.pwc.com/apec
Introduction
The unprecedented rate of growth in the APEC region
has been supported by the opening of new markets,
technological change and innovative, new business
models. Enabling policy frameworks are required to
ensure that everyone, including small businesses,
women and marginalised groups, can access, utilise
and benefit from emerging growth opportunities.
While governments play a central role in this task, it
is also clear that policy issues such as the inclusion
of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in
global value chains, the realisation of disaster and
energy resilience, inclusive mobility, and affordable
and sustainable healthcare systems require a whole-
of-economy approach.

To support APEC’s goal of “Building Inclusive

Economies, Building a Better World”, the APEC
Business Advisory Council (ABAC) and APEC 2015
CEO Summit team proposed a series of dialogues
between ministers, senior government officials and
industry leaders from the 21 APEC economies. They
held four Special Dialogue Sessions on trade, MSMEs,
transport and energy, and facilitated greater industry
participation in the 5th High Level Meeting on
Health and the Economy and the 9th Senior Disaster
Management Officials Forum. PwC contributed time
and expertise as the Knowledge Partner for each of
these meetings.

The need for a whole-of-government, whole-of-

economy approach to address various policy issues
and the pursuit of more innovative and effective
public-private sector collaboration were the key
themes in these meetings. The goal for the meetings
was to promote a robust exchange between ministers,
senior government officials and the business
community. The seeds for future cooperation have
been planted and we hope that this report will inspire
more discussions between leaders in the public and
private sectors at all levels.
“Currently, with the emerging concept of the “new normal”, we need a more holistic,
proactive, multi-stakeholder, and longer term interventions, specifically to make our
economies resilient against disasters. This is the main reason why we are here today
in the beautiful city of Iloilo, to participate in the 9th Senior Disaster Management
Officials Forum.”
- Hon. Voltaire Gazmin, Secretary of National Defence , the Philippines

What’s on the agenda? Key themes

It is no longer viable to manage disasters single-handedly
and in isolation in the context of the ‘new normal’, whereby
disasters are becoming more complex, frequent and
unpredictable in terms of occurrence, scope and magnitude.
There is recognition that the limitations on the availability
of resources, clarity of remit and access to the right
capabilities vary across economies. It is therefore important
that the approach each economy takes is tailored to reflect
those differences. The model of interoperability that
promotes inter-economy cooperation with a coordinated,
comprehensive, integrated and proactive approach in
addressing disaster risks and management will determine
how well the next disaster can be managed.
“1 + 1 = 3” The power of collaboration
Presenters provided comprehensive research and data to
contextualise the ‘new normal’ and the scale of challenges
the region now faces along with an encouraging range of
innovation and experiences that will enable sustainable
change in disaster risk reduction and management. We
have categorised the themes from all presentations and
discussions into four components: preparedness,
innovation, interoperability and strategic investment.
Summarised below are the key initial steps that can be
taken in the short to medium term to improve disaster
management in the region:

APEC is gearing towards a common goal of sustainable
economic growth through enhanced inter-economy
cooperation in dealing with disasters. They are building on
the four pillars of disaster management - prevention and
mitigation, preparedness, response, and rehabilitation and
rebuilding - and organised a discussion around responses to
the ‘new normal’ across six panel sessions:
• Understanding the proliferation of the “new normal” in
the Asia Pacific region
• Predicting the ‘new normal’: Maximising science-based
approaches
• Preparing for the ‘new normal’: Anticipating the risks of
disasters
• Responding to the ‘new normal’: Lessons learned and best
practices
• Recovering from the ‘new normal’: Building back better,
safer and faster
• Economic impact of the ‘new normal’: Inter and intra
economy
• Appoint key focal points in the public sector to
encourage private sector links and collaboration
• Encourage private sector leadership by providing the
right incentives
• Create catalyst events for joint dialogue and action
• Develop a set of working principles or “playbooks”
for interoperability across APEC economies
Preparedness
1 The impact to any APEC economy of a poor and
protracted response and recovery is multi-
layered: from the immediate loss of lives and
human impact to direct financial losses and
prolonged economic stagnation or downturn.
As a result, the focus upon effective and highly
pro-active disaster risk reduction, mitigation
and preparedness becomes critical in enabling
future response.

Building disaster resilience under a ‘new normal’ 3

 More focus is required on disaster risk Interoperability
reduction and the approach should include
the following principles:
3 The increasing demand on our environment,
infrastructure, healthcare and key services has
• Understand what a “disaster” is in your placed unprecedented stress on public resources.
local economy context There is a clear recognition of a need for
Clearly articulate what will qualify as a multilateral collaboration due to the size,
“disaster” and make this known to citizens, frequency and complexity of disasters. APEC
regional partners, and the private sector. economies need to:

• Anticipate the risk • Understand the resource gap they have.

Utilise the latest technology available and
create partnerships with leading research
institutions for forecasting and early warning
systems.
• Be prepared to manage risk across the
economy
Risks identified should be addressed and
mitigated where possible. In reality, most
economies will need to be prepared to address
4 Interoperability should also extend to joint
unmitigated risks.
• Practice makes perfect
Regular disaster simulation drills and exercises
will enhance the readiness for the whole
economy to react.
Innovation
2 The far reaching impact of disasters creates
complexity and, in turn, increases the cost of
managing most crises. It is more vital than ever
that sustainable innovative solutions are created
not least for cost efficiency but also to improve
the ability to prepare and respond to a disaster
and eventually rebuild better.
Innovation comes in many forms and can be
initiated from either side of the public-private
sector divide. Examples can range from new
information sharing hubs that allow small to
medium enterprises access to the same level of
catastrophe modelling and risk information that
exists at a national level, right through to physical
structures for response and re-housing.
• Identify the remit for the various partners from
NGOs to the private sector.
• Set up collaboration mechanisms and processes
well in advance of a disaster to rapidly draw on
capabilities and capacity available.
Strategic investment
funding and investments. The need and desire to
recover rapidly and efficiently is a common goal
among all players - Governments, non-
government organisations, local communities
and the private sector want to get back to
business as usual. Creative ways of sharing
financial risks and rewards will need to be
developed to make available a larger pool of
funding for investments across the four pillars of
disaster management. The success of such joint
ventures will depend on some of the following:
• Creating frameworks to articulate roles and
responsibilities in a disaster.
• Develop trust between the public and private
sector.
• Finding partners with common goals.
• Matching resources on offer to needs.
• Understanding the drivers and incentives for
collaboration.

The outlay costs of many such innovations and

potentially long development time will far
outstrip the resources available to the public
sector. By engaging with the private sector,
opportunities to share resources, information and
ideas, innovation through collaboration will
happen more frequently, at a faster rate and
more efficiently.

4 9th APEC Senior Disaster Management Officials Forum

The way forward
Avoid common pitfalls and assumptions
One size fits all
What works in one APEC economy may not work in
another. It is crucial to understand the needs and
requirements in your economy and tailor the approach
to disaster management.
The private sector will self-organise
The private sector can deliver more value if they are
engaged in advance and brought in to complement
government and other initiatives. Explore the scale and
range of expertise that the private sector brings.
The private sector are only interested in profits
Social capital is becoming a key priority for
organisations all over the world due to its importance to
their employees and customers. Build trust and a
relationship with the private sector to identify common
values and purpose.
Adopt best practices
Use effective standardised performance indicators
A key performance indicator (KPI) is a quantifiable
measure of change that relates to the objective which
was set out. For instance, if the objective is to increase
the education of women, a quantifiable KPI is the
percentage increase in the number of women attending
schools. KPIs in crisis situations can drive outcome
driven behaviour and consistency in assessing
improvements across the region.
Be prepared to change the rules
In an emergency coupled with layers of complexity,
normal tried and tested approaches may not work.
Decision makers need to recognise that and make rapid
and sometimes radical change. Recent game changers
include: rapid approval of home-operated businesses
for small and medium sized enterprise in Christchurch
following the earthquake to revive trading; and Kobe
City has now put in place zoned building permission
whereby only commercial buildings will be allowed in
earthquake prone areas.
Create robust transparent fund management
mechanism
Clearly identify how and where to source for funding,
who to distribute to, what are the best mechanisms to
use, and how to account for funding. Transparency
and accountability will create trust among
stakeholders and donors, and encourage further
investments when required.
Building disaster resilience under a ‘new normal’ 5
 List of speakers
Alexander Pama Margarita R Songco
Undersecretary and Administrator, Deputy Director General,
Office of Civil Defense National Economic Development Authority, Philippines
Executive Director,
National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Center Marisa Michel
Director, Global Crisis Centre, PwC
Andrew Maskrey
Head of Risk Knowledge, Maxim Zayko
United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction Deputy Director of International Cooperation Department,
EMERCOM, Russia
Andrey Kudinov
Head of Space Monitoring Division, Nguyen Anh Minh
National Crisis Management Centre, EMERCOM, Russia Deputy Director General of International Cooperation, Viet Nam

Bernardus Wisnu Widjaja Nicholas Barker

Deputy Chief for Prevention and Preparedness, Assistant Director International Engagement,
National Disaster Management Authority, Indonesia Emergency Management, Australia

Bill Ho Oscar Lopez

Head of Information Technology and Communications, Chairman, Oscar M Lopez Foundation
Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre
Paul Robertson
Carl Schelfaut Director, Global Crisis Centre, PwC
Chief of Staff, Deutsche Post DHL Group Asia Pacific
Puji Pujiono
Chin-Seung Chung Regional Adviser on Disaster Risk Reduction, United Nations
Director, APEC Climate Centre Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

Cynthia Paola Estrada Cabrera Raymund Liboro

Deputy of Cultural Promotion, Assistant Secretary, Department of Science and Technology,
National Center for Disaster Prevention, Mexico Philippines

Doris Magsaysay-Ho Rene S Meily

Chair, APEC Business Advisory Council President, Philippine Disaster Recovery Foundation

Felix I Icochea Said Faisal

Director of the Direction of Rehabilitation, Executive Director, ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian
National Institute of Civil Defence, Peru Assistance

Guillermo Luz Timothy Manning

Senior Advisor, Philippine Disaster Recovery Foundation Deputy Administrator, Protection and National Preparedness,
Federal Emergency Management Agency, United States
H.E. Phillip Gibson
Vilma Cabrera
Ambassador to the Philippines,
Assistant Secretary,
Government of New Zealand
Department of Social Welfare and Development Philippines
Hon. Arthur D. Defensor, Sr.
Yi Peizhuang
Governor, Provincial Government of Iloilo, Philippines
Deputy Director General of International Cooperation,
Ministry of Civil Affairs, People’s Republic of China
Hon. Voltaire T. Gazmin
Secretary of National Defence, Philippines Yoshiyasu Hyotani
Deputy Director General, Disaster Management Bureau, Japan
Hongey Chen
Director, National Science and Technology Centre for Disaster
Reduction, Chinese Taipei

Ma. Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga

Executive Director, Manila Observatory

6 9th APEC Senior Disaster Management Officials Forum

About ABAC
The APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) was created
by the APEC Economic Leaders to provide advice on the
implementation of the APEC agenda and on specific
business sector priorities. Its members are appointed by
their respective Leaders, and represent a range of business
sectors, including small and medium enterprises.

About APEC CEO Summit

The APEC CEO Summit provides an opportunity for
business leaders in the Asia-Pacific to engage in discussions
with APEC Economic Leaders, policy makers, academia and
other CEOs on issues facing the region. The Summit is held
in the APEC host economy just prior to the annual APEC
Leaders’ Meeting and is an example of APEC’s efforts to
promote public-private sector dialogue and cooperation.
This year’s Summit is being hosted by APEC Philippines.

About PwC
We provide organisations with the professional service they
need, wherever they may be located. Our highly qualified,
experienced professionals listen to different points of view to
help organisations solve their business issues and identify and
maximise the opportunities they seek. Our industry
specialisation allows us to help co-create solutions with our
clients for their sector of interest.

This report was prepared by PwC in its role as Knowledge Partner to the APEC 2015 CEO Summit.

www.pwc.com/apec
This content is for general information purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for consultation with professional advisors.

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