Risk & Crisis Management in Tourism Sector:
Recovery from Crisis
in the OIC Member Countries
18
Category 2: Management Failure/Lack of Contingency Planning
Crises can occur within the business or at the level of a region or country, and include (within the
business) collapse due to management shortcomings, financial fraud, loss of data, destruction of
place of business due to fire or flood without adequate back-up procedures or insurance cover; and
(at the level of a region or country) acts of war or terrorism, political upheavals, crime waves, and
anthropogenic climate change.
1.2. Risk Management
Effective risk management can prevent an issue from becoming a crisis. Poor understanding and
management of risks can lead to a crisis situation. Risk management involves assessing the
probability of negative events that may lead to the tourismsector being unable to operate normally.
As will be seen from the case studies in Sections 4 and 5, destinations face a range of risks, some of
which are beyond the control of management while others are due to management shortcomings
or can be mitigated by crisis mitigation planning.
The stages of the process are illustrated by the model of disaster risk management developed for
natural disasters in the Caribbean, as shown in Figure 1.1. The stages of preparedness, response,
and recovery take place against a background of technical and hazard knowledge and planned
responses.
Figure 1.1: Disaster Risk Management Strategy
Source: adapted fromworkshop on Disaster Risk Management Strategy for Tourism in the Caribbean, May 2009