Skip to main content

UNDRR Logo

UNDRR Logo

Knowledge

  • Global Assessment Report (GAR)
  • PreventionWeb

Special Events

  • Global Platform
  • International Day for Disaster Reduction
  • World Tsunami Awareness Day

Tools

  • Sendai Framework Monitor
  • Voluntary Commitments

UNDRR

  • UNDRR Africa
  • UNDRR Americas
  • UNDRR Arab States
  • UNDRR Asia-Pacific
  • UNDRR Europe
  • Home
  • About UNDRR
    About us
    As the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, UNDRR convenes partners and coordinates activities to create safer, more resilient communities.
    Learn more

    We Mega Menu - About us

    • Our work
    • Our impact
    • Where we work
    • Funding
    • History
    • Work with us

    We Mega Menu - About us 2

    • Where we work
      • Africa
      • Americas & Caribbean
      • Arab States
      • Asia & Pacific
      • Europe & Central Asia
    • Liaison and sub-regional offices
      • Bonn Liaison Office
      • Kobe Liaison Office
      • New York Liaison Office
      • Office for North East Asia and Global Education and Training Institute
      • Suva Sub-regional Office
  • Implementing the Sendai Framework
    The Sendai Framework
    is the global roadmap for reducing human and economic loss as a direct result of disasters.
    Learn more

    We Mega menu - Sendai Framework 1

    • What is the Sendai Framework?
    • Voluntary Commitments
    • The Sendai Framework in action
    • Training
    • The Sendai Framework and the SDGs
    • Global Platform for DRR
    • Regional platforms

    We Mega menu - Sendai Framework 2

    • Partnerships
      • Partners and stakeholders
      • Initiatives
  • News & events
    News & events
    UNDRR organizes the Global, Regional and National Platforms on Disaster Risk Reduction and facilitates training workshops around the world.
    Learn more

    We Mega Menu - News & Events

    • Latest news
    • Media centre
    • Event calendar
    • DRR platforms
    • International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction
    • World Tsunami Awareness Day
    • Awards

    We Mega Menu - News & Events 2

    • Global Platform for DRR
    • Regional Platforms
      • Africa
      • Americas & Caribbean
      • Arab States
      • Asia & Pacific
      • Europe & Central Asia
  • Building Risk Knowledge
    Knowledge
    We provide tools such as the DRR Community site PreventionWeb, publications on good practices, and the Global Assessment Report (GAR)
    Learn more

    We Mega menu - Knowledge 1

    • Understanding risk
    • DRR community
      • PreventionWeb
      • International Recovery Platform

    We Mega menu - Knowledge 2

    • Global Assessment Report
    • DESINVENTAR
    • UNDRR publications
    • UN resolutions & reports
    • Terminology
  1. Home
  2. publication
  3. Documents and publications

The state of disaster resilience of small businesses: 'Natural hazard' or 'disaster'


Documents and publications
Working papers
Author(s)
Sands, Dale
Source
United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction
Publication Year
2019
Number of pages
16 p.

The role of small businesses within communities is vital and stimulating to the city overall. Businesses provide goods and services to residents and visitors, employ local neighbors, and contribute to the well-being of the greater neighborhood. For businesses, resilience is the ability to survive, adapt and grow regardless of the shocks or stresses experienced. This includes being prepared for disasters, knowing how to respond to disasters, and understanding how to be connected both before and after a disaster. Small businesses have been largely forgotten when it comes to preparation for, response to or recovery from disasters. There are resilience improvement initiatives for major cities and multinational companies, however, small businesses are left behind even though they are the major source of employment, of new jobs created and often serve as critical supply links both to the community as well as to other companies.

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), in partnership with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and with funding support from the Walmart Foundation, launched a study in 2016 to evaluate the disaster preparedness and resilience of small- to mid-size enterprises (SMEs). This study was initiated after the devastating Category 5 Hurricane Katrina (2005) in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, which caused the death of 1,833 people and caused infrastructure damages in excess of $125B as a result of storm surge and levee failure. As a typical coastal city with many SMEs, this study focused on surveying over 200 SMEs in New Orleans to better understand the degree of preparedness to plan for, respond to and recover from a natural disaster.

This paper is a contribution to the 2019 edition of the Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (GAR 2019).

To cite this paper: 

Sands, D. The state of disaster resilience of small businesses 'natural hazard' or 'disaster'. Contributing Paper to GAR 2019

Share this
Go back
Also featured on

PreventionWeb

Download
Download file Download file
Related information
Related links
USA: Small businesses are a vital part of community resiliency but often overlook vulnerabilities
Small businesses: Impact of disasters and building resilience
United States: Two in three small businesses lack a written disaster recovery plan
USA: Small businesses nationwide call on congress to prioritize flood-ready infrastructure
Keywords
Hazards
Cyclone
Flood
Themes
Private Sector
Disaster Risk Management
Country & Region
United States of America

Stay in touch

Sign up for UNDRR updates

UNDRR Tools

  • Making Cities Resilient
  • PreventionWeb
  • Sendai Framework Monitor
  • Voluntary Commitments

Contact us

Sendai Framework

© UNDRR 2020 -2022

Footer

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Sustainable Development Goals Logo