There is a growing need for the development (and nurturing) of Private-Public Partnerships, or P3s, for better emergency management. And for a couple of very good reasons.

First, recent revisions of the National Response Framework emphasized government and private sector collaboration to support “effective coordination of resources and the stabilization of community lifelines.” Second, the July 2021 release of the guide, “Building Private-Public Partnerships,” from FEMA’s National Integration Center provided some much-needed (and very welcomed) insight for jurisdictions seeking to establish/maintain P3s. The guide also identified several key benefits of doing so, as shown below:

  1. Higher-quality and timely services by the private and public sectors. 
  2. Reduced complexity and increased return on investment.
  3. Trusted communications channels to industries, employees, and their families. 
  4. Better and more realistic planning, training, and exercises through joint risk assessments. 
  5. Creative private-sector financing options for permanent reconstruction.
  6. Lower cost of response and recovery due to increased mitigation and resilience. 
  7. Effective public and private resource management. 

P3s, as expressed by FEMA, “help to mitigate stressors on individuals and communities that a disaster causes, such as job loss, damaged housing or the inability to operate small businesses, by strengthening social networks and connections, improving social cohesion and fostering an environment of diversity and inclusion.”

So, whether your organization is looking to form a P3 for the first time or hoping to strengthen the one(s) it has in place, take time out to read FEMA’s “Building Private-Public Partnerships” guide first. It’s chocked full of information to help you with the process (e.g., success stories, sample agreements, etc.) and improve emergency management within your organization and throughout the community at large. The guide is available for download at: https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_building-private-public-partnerships.pdf

This information is shared with you as a courtesy of