[MTE] [Oct 2025] [P1] Collaborative Resilience: Building Area-wide Business Continuity Frameworks

Part 1: Strength in Collaboration – The Philippine Model for Business Continuity and Disaster Resilience

Introduction

When disaster strikes the Philippines, the private sector plays a central role in response and recovery.

Veronica Gabaldon, Executive Director of the Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF), shared how the organisation has become a model for public-private partnerships in disaster risk reduction and business continuity.

This is Part 1 of the three-part summary of Veronica's presentation during BCM Institute's Meet-the-Expert webinar.  The webinar is summarised by Dr Goh Moh Heng, President of the BCM Institute.

Who is PDRF?

Founded in 2009 after a major typhoon, PDRF is a private-sector-led, non-profit organisation that coordinates preparedness, response, and recovery efforts across industries.

Through its cluster system, PDRF groups member companies by their core competencies — from infrastructure, logistics, telecoms, and utilities to finance and healthcare — creating a robust coordination mechanism that works seamlessly with government and humanitarian systems.

At the heart of PDRF’s operations is HANDA, an ArcGIS-based monitoring and incident management platform that integrates hazard data from multiple government sources.

This tool allows businesses to overlay their facilities and employee locations with real-time hazard information, supporting rapid decision-making during crises.

How Does PDRF Help the Society?

Beyond emergencies, PDRF focuses on capacity building. Through its Business Continuity and Organisational Resilience program, it helps both large corporations and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) strengthen their continuity capabilities.

Recognising that 99% of Philippine businesses are SMEs, PDRF simplified the traditional BCP process into accessible, 6–10-step frameworks, published in local dialects and distributed through guidebooks and toolkits.

In partnership with the government, PDRF also co-developed the Public Service Continuity Plan (PSCP) — a government-wide framework to ensure that essential services remain functional during disasters.

A national memorandum has since mandated all agencies to create their PSCPs, a major step toward institutionalising resilience.

“Resilience is no longer an option,” Gabaldon emphasized. “It’s an imperative — and it must be ecosystem-wide.”

Through these initiatives, PDRF has fostered what Gabaldon calls a “resilient ecosystem” — one in which business, government, and communities collectively anticipate, withstand, and adapt to disruptions.

Summing Up Part 1 – Key Points

Focuses on PDRF’s organisational model, collaboration mechanisms, and national-level initiatives.

Dr Goh Moh Heng, President of BCM Institute, summarises this webinar. If you have any questions, please speak to the author.

Summing Up for Parts 1 & 2 ...

Click the icon below to continue reading parts of Veronica Gabaldon's presentation. 

 

Collaborative Resilience: Building Area-wide Business Continuity Frameworks

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