PPP experts from around the world identified concrete steps for integrating resilience into infrastructure and PPP projects.

The 10 PPP experts, met in Louisiana, one of the country’s most disaster-prone regions – due to its low lying, on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. As threats from climate change increase, resilience is key for local communities who can face a loss of their homes, jobs and livelihoods. Resilience is also high on policymakers’ attention as the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) imposes fundamental changes to our interconnected economies.

UNECE’s People-first approach to PPPs embodied in the organization’s Guiding Principles on People-first PPPs for the SDGs, and the UNECE People-first Project Impact Assessment Tool currently being developed can play a key role in building resilience and improving preparedness.

Experts’ discussions in Louisiana revealed key learnings, that are pertinent for countries globally, and that can translate into concrete steps for policy makers and the private sector to take, namely:

• Building resilience is crucial at all levels of governance, as well as within communities and stakeholders, including the private sector. Beyond building resilient infrastructure, communities for example can play an important role in identifying the risks and the solutions to overcome them and raising the self-awareness of the population for example trough educational programmes, drills etc.

• Public-Private Partnerships are important vehicles for meeting the challenges and threats at different stages – in preparing against disasters, the actual emergency and in the post disaster recovery. More can be done, in Louisiana and across the globe, to promote PPPs for resilience.  

• To live up to these expectations, PPPs need to be innovative, taking forward a greener, more socially inclusive and more sustainable response to building resilience. As evidenced by the aftermath of the 2011 Tsunami in Japan, PPPs can assist in providing a continuity in service as many local communities lacked basic services such as electricity for several weeks, and a partnership between Miyako and a private company helped develop a resilient and smart city using renewable energy sources.