Categories: Business

Safety at workplace: ‘Why NSITF is taking campaign to informal sector of Nigerian economy’

Published by

3 years ago

Officials of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Ibadan Regional Office, during a safety campaign walk to commemorate the year 2022 World Safety Day in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital recently.

EVERY 28th of April is a day set aside by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), to appraise and forge ahead in the quest to ensure better safety and health standards worldwide.

The theme for this year’s World Saftey Day is “Lets Act Together To build A Positive Safety And Health Culture”.

Nigeria, also, allign with other countries of the world to adopt the annual international campaign to promote safe, healthy and decent work conditions.

It is estimated that work days lost to occupational safety and health-related causes represent almost four percent of global GDP, in some countries as much as six percent.

By far, the greatest proportion of current work-related deaths, 86 percent, come from disease. An estimated 6,500 people a day die from occupational diseases, compared to 1,000 a day from fatal occupational accidents.

Organisers stress that an occupational safety and health culture is one in which every worker has the right to a safe and healthy working environment. A healthy and safety culture is respected at all levels, where governments, employers, and workers actively participate in securing a safe and healthy working environment.

Growing challenges include psychosocial risks, work-related stress and non-communicable diseases, notably circulatory and respiratory diseases, and cancers.

Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), being the sole agency responsible for the implementation of the Employees’ Compensation Act 2010, which is geared towards providing social protection in terms of compensation to employees and their dependants for injuries, disabilities, diseases and death sustained during or in course of work; views campaign for safety as cogent and expedient in ensuring that workplaces and environment are safe for daily activities.

Over the years, NSITF has been embarking on series of campaigns to the formal sector of the Nigerian economy such as roadshows which are done on annual basis to sensitise employees on the importance of ensuring safety at all time.

NSITF, in a bid to make the campaign for safety broader, is now engaging the informal sector, a development the Regional Manager, Ibadan Region, Mrs Toyin Violet Emeordi, in an interview with the Nigerian Tribune during this year’s Walk For Safety organised by NSITF described as very crucial.

She noted that:”The beauty of our scheme is that we cover both the formal and informal sectors and we just kick-started something about the informal sector now, we are drawing attention towards the informal sector.

Few months ago, we met with heads of various associations in the informal sectors at an event put together in Ibadan for the purpose of sensitization.

We are shifting attention towards them because their risk is high, I mean the artisans, the okada riders and others, we are going to continue to preach safety to them. Part of this is to go round the town to preach that safety at the workplace is key. Whether at home, farm, workshops or as the case may be. Whatever association you belong to, safety is key and that is why we are out now ready to kickstart the walk to let them know that safety is key.

The Regional Head HSE, Mr. Gbenga Oso, remarked that this year’s celebration is about sensitising the public to embrace safety intelligence by imbibing safety culture for an accident-free environment and optimal productivity. He also noted that the education sector is a major industry in this region, and the call for safety culture will be taking to the schools for an early and easy adoption into the society.

IN CASE YOU MISSED THESE FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE