Date and Location: Tuesday 16 - Wednesday 17 May 2023 Bangkok, Thailand
By invitation only
Countries in Asia and the Pacific are highly vulnerable to a wide range of natural hazards such as earthquakes, typhoons, floods, and landslides. Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, highlighting the urgent need for effective risk reduction and disaster management strategies.
From 2015 – 2021, climate-related disasters affected more than 800 million people across the region, resulting in 53,000 deaths and damages of more than US$397 billion.
In this context, it is more important than ever that local and national governments, the United Nations, and regional and international organizations work together with the business community to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.
The private sector is the backbone of sustainable and resilient development, driving infrastructure investments, supporting the livelihoods of employees and suppliers, and providing critical goods and services for customers and society at large. Businesses have significant resources and expertise that can help make the societies they are part of better able to withstand and recover from emergencies.
This two-day invitation-only workshop will gather together business leaders, government officials, and humanitarian and development organizations from across Asia and the Pacific to discuss how the power of the private sector can be harnessed to support more efficient and effective disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
Workshop Objectives
The Connecting Business initiative (CBi) was established by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to promote strategic engagement with the private sector before, during, and after emergencies.
For our inaugural regional meeting in Asia and the Pacific, CBi aims to:
- Promote the exchange of best practices and lessons learned from public-private collaboration for disaster preparedness, response, and recovery;
- Facilitate dialogue on current challenges and policy gaps in national disaster risk management frameworks;
- Identify mechanisms for improved collaboration between the private sector and humanitarian and development partners including local and national governments, regional and international organizations, and civil society;
- Highlight the benefits of private sector engagement in national disaster risk management mechanisms and policies, and identify entry points for enhanced collaboration; and
- Generate a common agenda for integrating and scaling up private sector operational engagement in disaster preparedness, humanitarian coordination and response, and recovery.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact CBi’s Network Coordination Specialist, Ms. Rhiza Nery, by emailing florian.rhiza.nery@undp.org.
