Last week, an estimated 61,000 people were evacuated in Panama as part of a four-day disaster response simulation exercise that brought together over 1,000 participants – including, for the first time, private sector representatives – from more than 15 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean as well as Israel and Japan.
The 3rd Regional Simulation on Disaster Response and Humanitarian Assistance was organized from 13-16 June by the Coordination Center for the Prevention of Disasters in Central America and the Dominican Republic (CEPREDENAC) to assess Panama's response capacity in the event of a disaster. Over 600 prevention and rescue professionals were mobilized to carry out emergency maneuvers and check emergency protocols.
The OCHA/UNDP Connecting Business initiative (CBi) collaborated with UNDRR Private Sector Alliance for Disaster Resilient Societies (ARISE) and UNICEF's Business and Community Resilience (BCR) to involve the private sector in this event, through knowledge building and active participation in the exercises and thanks to the support of CEPREDENAC, SumaRSE (ARISE Panama) and CENACED (CBi – ARISE Mexico).
Business was involved in the following activities related to the 3rd Regional Simulation Exercise in Panama:
- A webinar on humanitarian architecture in Latin America and the Caribbean
- The Public-Private Partnership Forum to Strengthen CEPREDENAC’s Regional Mechanism
- The two-day Earthquake and Tropical Wave Exercise
Conference on Humanitarian Architecture, Emergency Response and the Earthquake scenario for the private sector
On June 8, OCHA ROLAC and CBi led a webinar on the setup of the humanitarian architecture in Latin America and the Caribbean, highlighting the crucial role of coordination in the response to emergencies and disasters. Rogerio Mobilia Silva, ROLAC Deputy Head of Office, highlighted some of the challenges that UN agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) face in humanitarian response, identified opportunities for private sector to be involved in preparedness and response activities in the region, and encouraged companies to work more closely with humanitarian agencies.
“Humanitarian coordination is complex, but it is needed to provide a highly organized response. Organization and effective coordination is crucial in a crisis context.” – Rogerio Mobilia Silva, Deputy Head of Office, OCHA ROLAC
Public-Private Partnership Forum: Strengthening CEPREDENAC’s Regional Mechanism
The Simulation Exercise programme began with a Forum dedicated to promoting solid alliances between the public and private sectors and strengthen the Regional Mechanism for Humanitarian Assistance in the event of Disasters of the Central American Integration System (MecReg-SICA). The Regional Mechanism seeks to guarantee a more effective and coordinated response in emergency situations and disasters.
Shelley Cheatham, Head of the United Nations Regional Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs for Latin America and the Caribbean (OCHA ROLAC) highlighted that “It is necessary to reinforce and strengthen coordination between public and private sectors and humanitarian actors.”
Elisa Trujillo, General Director of CENACED, the CBi Member Network in Mexico, shared the perspective of the private sector from her experience in humanitarian assistance. "Alliances are a dynamic challenge, full of changes over time, especially when they are multisectoral. It is important to be flexible and willing to adapt to new circumstances, adjust strategies and review agreements if necessary.”
Earthquake and Tropical Wave Exercises
On June 13 at noon, an earthquake of 7.5 magnitude and a Tropical Wave 10 were simulated, with a high impact on the infrastructure and services of Panama City.
OCHA ROLAC guided and trained the UN Emergency Technical Team (UNETE) from Panama who met on-site to respond to the emergency in accordance with humanitarian assistance protocols and with the participation of Ana Graça, Resident Coordinator in Panama. At 4pm, the regional coordination Regional Group on Risks, Emergencies and Disasters for Latin America and the Caribbean platform (REDLAC) was activated to provide regional support to the UNETE team.
As part of the drill, 15 selected companies from key sectors of the country participated to test the operation procedure to liaise with the private sector in case of a humanitarian emergency. This procedure was developed by CBi and adapted to the Panamanian context for the exercise.
Over the course of three hours, Iria González, CBi Regional Coordinator, led the coordination exercise with the Panamanian private sector, in parallel with the UNETE team. Companies identified and shared their potential needs, and proposed strategic contributions within the framework of the response. As a result of this exercise, the businesses generated synergies and identified activities and services to support each other in case of a major emergency.
The following day focused on a broader desktop simulation exercise, with the participation of 32 Panamanian companies, through a role-play divided into five areas:
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Financing and Economic Assistance
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Innovation and Technology
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Infrastructure and Logistics
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Human Resources and Training
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Business Policies and Practices
The purpose of this exercise was to identify and discuss, in a comprehensive way, the potential actions and contributions of the private sector in disaster response.
Results of the participation of the private sector
The involvement of the private sector in the 3rd Regional Simulation Exercise intended to raise awareness and facilitate better coordination around how to further integrate business into humanitarian response in the region.
It was an important step towards enabling the private sector so they know how to contribute to humanitarian response operations in case of disasters at the national and regional level. However, it also served to sensitize other actors in the humanitarian sector and strengthen collaboration as part of the CEPREDENAC Regional Mechanism for disaster response.
All participants from across sectors were there to learn, exchange, and better prepare for disasters. These are essential ways to strengthen the resilience, preparation, and response capacity of the Panamanian private sector and society.