In support of the National Unified Information, Education and Communication Program of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau and the Philippine minerals industry, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau conducted the Public Relations and Crisis Management Training on December 19 to 21, 2022 at the Makati Palace Hotel in Makati City.
Information Officers, Community Affairs Officers and key personnel of the Social Development Section from the MGB Central and Regional Offices, together with select participants from mining companies, took part in the said training which was organized by the Mineral Economics, Information and Publication Division of MGB Central Office.
The program started with the welcome remarks of the MGB Director, Atty. Wilfredo G. Moncano. It was then followed by the inspirational speech of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines Executive Director, Atty. Ronald S. Recidoro who laid emphasis on the relevance of the training in the delivery of services and the pursuit of promoting responsible mining towards national progress.
The first part of the training centered on the rudiments of Public Relations which was facilitated by Ms. Teresa Pacis. The in-depth lectures comprised discussions on topics such as Nature of Public Relations, Media Landscape, Crisis Communication and its Components and Tools, Stakeholders Map, Message Puzzle, Spokesperson Tree and Crisis Communication Press Materials. A variety of substantial exercises supplemented the lectures. The first part of the training ended with a synthesis of the lectures and exercises.
The second part of the training focused on Case Study of Crisis Management Cases/Scenarios and Crisis Communication Planning which was facilitated by Mr. Gil Velez. In the words of Mr. Velez, the success of crisis communication and management in the mining sector requires a certain preparedness that is far more meticulous than for other sectors. He underlined the fact that the mining sector is so complex and subject to several legal, normative, environmental, social and reputational progressive constraints. He also laid emphasis on crisis as a matter of time in the life of an organization.
In his lectures, Mr. Velez gave possible mining scenarios and led the participants in assessing and discussing the management of each scenario according to gravity and urgency. He also imparted the vital Guidelines for Prioritizing Crisis Communications during the First 48 Minutes in terms of priorities and external and internal communications. After the very engaging workshop on the preparation of a Crisis Communication Plan, the groups of participants presented their respective outputs.
To wrap up the training on Crisis Management and Crisis Communication Planning, Mr. Velez summarized all the elements that comprise it – Risk Analysis, Response Procedures, Activation Protocol, Communication Strategy, Emergency Contacts and Post-Crisis Assessment. The training concluded with a comprehensive synthesis and sharing of insights and learnings. It was then followed by the motivating closing remarks of Ms. Liz Cherry D. Solijon, Officer-in-Charge of Mineral Economics, Information and Publication Division of MGB Central Office.
