By Eunice A. Narvadez, DOST-STII, S&T Media Service
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PHIVOLCS) marked this year’s World Tsunami Awareness Day (WTAD) through the culmination of Tsunami Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) initiatives for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Metro Manila last 5 November 2021.
In the observance of the 2021 WTAD, DOST-PHIVOLCS recently inked a memorandum of understanding with DOST-National Capital Region (NCR) to work together for the conduct of Tsunami Preparedness and Response Planning of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises in Metro Manila.
With the risks posed by a tsunami and its possible significant interruption in the economic activities of the country, the program was designed to facilitate tsunami preparedness and response planning of MSMEs whose business offices and facilities are situated within the tsunami hazard zone in Metro Manila.
In 2019, the Philippine Statistics Authority recorded over a million business enterprises in the country and 99.5% of these belong to the MSME category while 20.2% of the MSMEs are located in NCR.
Some 140 MSMEs from the nine identified tsunami-prone cities in Metro Manila participated in the program and are primarily the ‘adopters’ of the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP) implemented by DOST-NCR.
In June, a series of planning workshops and development of individual tsunami risk reduction guides were put together by the partnering agencies for the participating MSMEs to aid them in preparing their businesses against the negative impact of tsunamis.
“The business sector needs to continue their critical operations immediately after disasters,” DOST Undersecretary for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Renato Solidum Jr. said, reiterating the need for the anticipation and preparation for rare but possible extreme events such as tsunamis and the COVID-19 pandemic.
A.S. Rivera Corp. and Samurai Foods Inc. were the two piloting companies who have collaborated with DOST-PHIVOLCS and DOST-NCR for the completion of their very own tsunami preparedness and response planning guides.
DOST-PHIVOLCS eyes to conduct similar activities for other DOST Regional SETUP adopters, additional community-based tsunami DRR activities by local government units, and forge collaborations with occupational safety organizations, especially with private sectors in the years to come.
Furthermore, the agency aims to scale up the support given to industry players that would similarly improve their DRR efforts for business continuity not only during the event of a tsunami but also during other disasters by providing sustainable and adequate support to their businesses.
“Building tsunami ready communities in this new normal is challenging, but key in this effort is partnership,” Usec. Solidum concluded. (DOST) -rir
