“You’ll never predict when the disaster will come,” said one of the participants of the Business Continuity Planning (BCP) Awareness Seminar conducted by UP ISSI for the Malabon Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) last 25 and 26 May 2017 at Max’s Restaurant, in Malabon City.
It was the first time that the local government unit requested UP ISSI for a BCP awareness seminar that would be beneficial to local businesses and, by extension, to the community.
The seminar’s objective was to educate individuals, especially business owners, to prepare for disasters that could occur anytime, how the impact of these disasters could be mitigated and how one could quickly and efficiently recover from them.
Since the city is located in a low-land area, it is recurrently prone to floods caused by heavy downpours. It is notoriously called the “Venice of the Philippines” because some of its area are submerged in floodwater during stormy days. Hence, the MDRRMO, headed by Roderick D. Tongol, initiated to have BCP awareness for its local businesses.
As per UP ISSI’s resource person Joanna Rose T. Laddaran: “It is always better to be proactive than reactive.”
A total of 21 participants participated in the BCP Awareness Seminar, where the industries represented were from the food manufacturing, food service, electricity service industry sectors, among others.
Malabon City Mayor Antolin “Lenlen” Oreta III graced the second day of the program, thanking the participants for their support to the local government’s programs.