November 26: Experts have underscored the need for the business continuity management (BCM) plans for minimizing the adverse impact on industries during times of disaster.    
Speakers at a training programme organized by the Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC) stressed that the industries and business enterprises too should prioritize preparing the BCMs.    
The centre’s representative Man Bahadur Thapa said BCM plans would be vital for the country's economic development as Nepal is at high risk of disaster. He said such plans would be very helpful to minimize the loss and damage due to the disaster to small and medium scale enterprises, since such enterprises are more at risk.    
He suggested that all the three tiers of government and the private sector should bring the BCM into practice. According to him, BCM should also be included in the syllabus from the school to university level.    
Sushil Bhandari of the National Disaster Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs spoke of the need of collaboration and synergy between the government and the private sector on disaster management. He stressed on making disaster risk management policies and strengthening institutional mechanisms.    
Participants of the programme shared that a global study conducted recently by a US-based organisation found nearly 40 per cent industries and businesses were closed due to disasters.    
As the BCM incorporates a response plan according to the type and scale of the disaster as well as a recovery plan, it is useful not only to the industries, their employees but also the state, said the experts. According to the experts, many countries in the world have been using BCM plans.    
Twenty seven participants representing the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), various banks and financial institutions and the tourism industry are taking part in the two-day training.    
The training incorporates topics as disaster risk management policies and institutional mechanisms, importance of disaster risk management in Nepal, overview of COVID-19 pandemic and /or disaster impacts on the private sector in the Asia Pacific Region and other BCM-related topics. -- RSS