The Embassy of Israel, headed by Ambassador Ilan Fluss, visited Makati City Mayor Abby Binay on Tuesday, Feb. 20, to showcase Israel's best practices in emergency and disaster response as well as some of its innovations in technology aiming to further improve the cooperation between the two governments.
BY PATRICK GARCIA of Manila Bulletin
The Embassy of Israel, headed by Ambassador Ilan Fluss, visited Makati City Mayor Abby Binay on Tuesday, Feb. 20, to showcase Israel's best practices in emergency and disaster response as well as some of its innovations in technology aiming to further improve the cooperation between the two governments.
Fluss, together with a delegation from leading companies from Israel which include 4Cast, Clinten, Corsight, Magna BSP, MER Group, More Than Security LTD, Octopus Systems, RT LTA Systems Ltd., and Steadicopter, went to the City Hall to meet with the city government and share their expertise in various industry sectors which include emergency response, homeland security, agriculture technologies, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and mobile, cyber innovations, energy, and healthcare.
Focusing on its disaster risk reduction strategies and technologies, the meeting aims to give insightful solutions to Makati City as part of its efforts to improve its disaster resilience and preparedness.
Fluss explained the Israeli delegation will be staying in the Philippines for three days to meet with key officials and other local government units (LGUs) to share their best practices and solutions, particularly on emergency response and smart systems.
Binay expressed her gratefulness to Fluss and the delegates for their efforts in strengthening not just Israel's ties with Makati but also the Philippines as she hoped that the country may also help Makati in improving its security and anti-terrorism emergency response.
Gawad KALASAG
On December 1 of last year, the city of Makati was lauded by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) for achieving the highest rating from the agency following its nationwide assessment of local disaster risk reduction and management councils and offices.
In its annual Gawad KALASAG (Kalamidad at Sakuna Labanan, Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan) Seal and Special Awards for Local DRRM Councils and Offices, the city was given the "Beyond Compliant" rating which is the highest rating given by the NDRRMC.
"We are thankful to the NDRRMC for recognizing the extensive efforts of the city government to build Makati’s resilience and keep all stakeholders safe and secure at all times. This two-peat achievement inspires us to pursue more innovations in DRRM alongside our efforts towards a carbon-neutral future,” Binay said.
“We humbly attribute the remarkable progress we have made in our journey towards a resilient and sustainable future to the strong synergy and collaboration between the city government and key stakeholders. Our strategic partnerships with industry leaders, national government agencies, and international organizations have enabled us to undertake high-impact and sustainable initiatives for the past seven years,” she added.
According to the Makati Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO), a regional validation team from the NDRRMC conducted an onsite inspection and validation of the city’s command control and communications (C3) center. The ICT-driven operations center features data analytics, automated incident report generation, and SOS function linked to the Makatizen App, the country’s first digital citizen app, among others.
The city also boasts of a state-of-the-art early warning system that includes automated weather stations, automatic rain gauges, and earthquake recording instruments. The system allows for reliable risk detection, analysis, and dissemination, which are essential to providing early warning against hydrometeorological hazards, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis.
Resilience Hub
The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) had earlier recognized Makati City as a Resilience Hub under its Making Cities Resilient (MCR) 2030 Initiative where it lauded the city's early warning system featured in the Words into Action (WiA) Guidebook of the UNDRR.
The UNDRR defines resilience hubs as cities, municipalities, or local authorities that have a political and technical commitment to take action to address disaster and climate risks.
Recently, Makati City also received the National Capital Region (NCR) Resilience Champion Award from the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
The city was also elected as the lead city of the Disaster Cluster of CityNet, the largest association of urban stakeholders who commit to sustainable development in the Asia Pacific region.
Makati City also conducts Family and Community Resilience Fairs in celebration of International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDDRR) which aims to boost public awareness of disaster preparedness for LGUs around the world to improve their disaster resilience and response initiatives.
During its resilience fairs, the city government showcases its disaster response equipment and techniques as well as an Early Warning System (EWS) Showcase and the Palarong Panghanda with the latter featuring booths where games aimed at raising awareness and building capacity through experiential fun-filled activities are being held.