Nat Re hosts capacity-building workshops under the Oasis Project
Manila, Philippines—The National Reinsurance Corporation of the Philippines (Nat Re) hosted two capacity-building workshops under the Oasis Project for select organizations from the government, the academe, and the private sector last November 25-29, 2019.
The first was a three-day workshop on climate input data processing and analysis, conducted by Dr. Christoph Menz and Dr. Anne Gaedeke, a data scientist and a hydrologist, respectively, from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), one of the leading institutes globally for climate research. The two instructors supported participants into using data from climate observations and simulations for practical applications in the field of climate change impact research.
Hydrologists, meteorologists, engineers, researchers, and environmental scientists from various Philippine government agencies and academic/research institutions joined the workshop conducted by researchers from the PIK.
In attendance were thirty-four hydrologists, meteorologists, engineers, researchers, and environmental scientists from three national government agencies, namely the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA); three local government disaster risk reduction and management offices, namely Makati City, Pasig City, and Quezon City; six departments from the Ateneo de Manila University, Mapua University, the University of Asia and the Pacific, and the University of the Philippines in Diliman and in Los Baños; and, one research institution, namely the Manila Observatory.
The second event was a two-day workshop which began with a session on basics of catastrophe modeling conducted by Nat Re Senior Catastrophe Risk Analyst Sherwin Parungao. Oasis LMF Programme Director Dr. Claire Souch then presented updates on the Oasis Project and a demonstration on how to use the Oasis Loss Modelling Framework (Oasis LMF) platform in which the catastrophe model for flood, the main output of the Oasis Project, will be housed. In attendance were over a hundred representatives from the government, the academe, the non-life insurance industry, and the development sector.
The second day’s program was on how to update the catastrophe model for flood so it can be refined further to be suitable to current Philippine conditions. This was conducted by KatRisk Managing Director and Co-Founder Stefan Eppert. This half-day session was for select government agencies which can be potential providers of hazard, vulnerability, or exposure datasets needed to develop and refine the catastrophe model.
Oasis LMF Programme Director Claire Souch gave an overview of the Oasis Project and the use of catastrophe models in other economies.
Attendees for the second day of the second workshop were representatives from select organizations which can be potential data providers for the catastrophe model.
Nat Re is the local project manager for the Oasis Project which is formally called Catastrophe and Climate Change Risk Assessment for the Philippines. Over two years, the project aims to develop the first open-access catastrophe model for flood in the Philippines, and build long-term capacity among participants in the Philippines to develop, understand, sustain, and use catastrophe models for risk-informed decision-making. Catastrophe models are computer applications that calculate the probability and severity of losses that a portfolio may sustain due to a catastrophe event such as an earthquake, typhoon or flood.
The project is implemented by project lead Oasis LMF and local and international implementing partners Nat Re, the University of the Philippines Geodetic Engineering Department, PAGASA, KatRisk, PIK, and Willis Towers Watson. The initiative is fully funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety.
The project is implemented by project lead Oasis LMF and local and international implementing partners Nat Re, the University of the Philippines Geodetic Engineering Department, PAGASA, KatRisk, PIK, and Willis Towers Watson. The initiative is fully funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety.