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Challenges of OSH Practice in Africa… way forward
BY
Principal ConsultantZub Chord Technical Ventures, Lagos Nigeria
National Coordinator, Safety Advocacy and Empowerment Foundation, Nigeria
MISPON, MNISCN, MASSE MISES
Introduction
A growing number of developing countries are now givinghigher priority to occupational safety and health (OSH) andpreventing accidents and ill health, in spite of the manypressures – economic and other – to cut back on such measures.
Unfortunately, in African countries OSH face of a lot ofchallenges which hinders its implementation in achievingoptimal performance in workplaces. Globally, an estimated 2.3million workers die every year from occupational accidents andwork- related diseases. In addition, millions of workers suffernon-fatal injuries and illnesses.
Africa region accounts for about 240 thousand deaths, 670workers die every day because of these causes This represents acolossal social and economic burden for enterprises,communities and countries, not to mention an appalling humanand financial problem for workers and their families.
The Decent Work Agenda in Africa:
2007–2015
Proposed targets
• Three-quarters of all African member States develop programmes for the improvement of working conditions, with specific national targetsfor reducing non-compliance with laws concerning hours of work and minimum pay, the reduction of occupational accidents, diseases and days lost to illness and accidents per worker, and a progressively increase in the number of labour inspectors in relation to workers.
Critical Sectors
• Agriculture
• Mining
• Construction
• Informal Sector (accounted for >90% of New Jobs in African in the lasts Decade)
More than 80 feared
dead in --- mining
accident
Key challenges facing the occupational safety and health (OSH)practice in the 21st century in Africa include:
1. Lack of political will and lip service to workers health.2. Problems of undetected chronic occupational diseases in
workers who have left employment.3. Regulatory mechanisms for OSH in Africa is weak and under-
resourced, bureaucratic and limited in scope.4. There was low level of ratifications of ILO Conventions that
address OSH in most African countries ;5. Lack of comprehensive national OSH policy framework; 6. ineffective OSH inspection; 7. inadequate investment in occupational safety and health
professional development.
The Challenge
OSH Initiatives - Africa Regional Level
• Ouagadougou Plan of action by Heads States and Government for promotion of employment and poverty alleviation (2004) – OSH/Hygiene as priority 2.4
• Conclusions of the 11th and 12th African Regional meetings, 2007 and 2011.
Africa - 11% of world’s population
• 49% of the world’s maternal deaths
• 50% of world’s children dying before 5 years of age
• Estimated 69 percent of all people living withHIV and 70 percent of all AIDS deaths in 2011.WHO, 2012
Issues influencing OSH in Africa
Labour force
World (2012)3,299,487
Africa415 , 908 Source: ILO (2013).
Child labour, HIV/AIDS, Communicable
diseases….
Source ILO, 2005Glo
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Issues influencing OSH in Africa
Disability/Chronic Poverty Circle
Issues influencing OSH in Africa
OSH Cycle Of Neglect
Nigeria N’Assembly fire extinguishers expired since 2012 –December 30, 2016http://punchng.com/nassembly-fire-extinguishers-expired-since-2012-investigation/
21 November 2016A South Africa pastor sprays his congregation with insecticidehttp://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/2016/11/21/prophet-of-doom-pastor-uses-insect-spray-to-drive-out-demons
Pastor makes members drinkDettol for healing December 9, 2016
http://punchng.com/pastor-makes-church-members-drink-dettol-healing/
OSH Cycle Of Neglect
Nov 17, 2016 73 people killed, after fuel tanker explodes in Mozambiquehttps://malawi24.com/2016/11/18/terrible-73-people-killed-after-fuel-tanker-explodes-in-mozambique/
March 25, 2016 TWO MEN DIE IN UNDERGROUND FUEL TANK IN LAGOSHTTP://PUNCHNG.COM/TWO-DIE-IN-UNDERGROUND-TANK-AT-LAGOS-FILLING-STATION/
OSH Cycle Of Neglect
12 October 2016Star Wars firm fined £1.6m over HarrisonFord injuryA production company behind the latest StarWars movie has been fined £1.6m ($2m)after Harrison Ford broke his leg on set.The actor was injured in June 2014 atPinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire as hereprised his role as Han Solo.He was struck by a metal door on the set ofthe Millennium Falcon spaceship.Foodles Production (UK) Ltd, owned byDisney, pleaded guilty earlier this year totwo charges brought by the Health andSafety Executive (HSE).In a statement, Foodles said it "deeplyregretted" what it described as an"unfortunate on-set accident“.http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-37637453?SThisFB
3 December 2016 London Underground fined £500,000 after worker injured in fall at disused stationLondon Underground has been fined £500,000 after a maintenance worker was injured in a fall at a disused station.The worker spent 10 days in hospital after plunging 9.5 metres from a scaffold tower while cleaning a former lift shaft.An investigation found that London Underground failed to properly plan, manage and supervise the work being carried out on September 22 2014.http://www.itv.com/news/2016-12-03/london-underground-fined-500-000-after-worker-injured-in-fall-at-disused-station/
OSH Cycle Of Neglect
Ratification of ILO-OSH Standards, - C155, 161, 187
Convention Global Ratification(Countries)
Africa Ratification (Countries)
Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155)
65 12 Algeria, Capo Verde, CAR;Ethiopia, Lesotho, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Occupational Health Services Convention, 1985 (No. 161)
32 6Benin, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Niger, Seychelles, Zimbabwe
Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187)
39 4Mauritius,Niger,Togo,
Zambia
South Africa62 Conventions not ratifiedType on Google: Up-to-date Conventions and Protocols not ratified by South Africa
Nigeria58 Conventions not ratified
The effect of globalisation on health and safety
• Liberalisation associated with deregulation of production laws– Add to the pressures on OHS standards
– OHS laws sometimes do not apply in some EPZs
– Penalties for breach of occupational health laws have been set at absurdly low levels (relative to other production costs)
– Patchy law enforcement
– Criminal sanctions for breach rarely invoked
– Inadequately resourced government inspection systems
– Non-application of laws in the informal sector
• Increasing proportion of manufacturing and industryshifted to the developing world
– Leads to higher level of injury and disease risk
– Job insecurity, contingent work arrangements andrising informality have adverse OSH outcomes
• Rise in injury rates, diseases rates, hazardexposures and work-related stress
• Temporary workers, sub-contractors and self-employed persons tend to have a very limitedunderstanding of their own responsibilities /inadequate training in OHS procedures
The effect of globalisation on health and safety
• Rapid and uneven production changes have not beenaccompanied by the necessary transfer of:
– Information
– Technology
– Skills
– Regulatory capacity
The effect of globalisation on health and safety
• High level of occupational accidents and diseases:
– Indicate that laws and strategies aimed at preventioncan / should be improved
– Re-evaluate regulatory strategies also because ofgrowing informalisation (non-standard contractualarrangements / self employment / workers in theinformal economy / role of unions / regulation???)• Share of the those engaged in informal work is as high as
90% in some African countries
• Increasing proportion of workers not protected bycompensation or prevention laws
• Many small employers don’t have the capacity to comply withOSH standards
Informalisation and OHS
.
The case was set for arbitration in April, but last week the mining companies announcedthey had reached an out-of-court settlement worth up to R464-million. For the miners,whose legal battle began essentially in 2004, the agreement is a relief. But for manyothers, still pushing cases against the large gold producers, it’s only a positive indicator ofthings to come.
“Many of the miners had been working for up to 35 years in a job thatultimately made them sick. The sickness meant that they were no longeremployable in that industry and the skills that they had developed, afterbeing denied a formal education, were of no use in any other job.“Now they are in their 50s, have no education, no way of making moneyand they are sick — so sick that they cannot walk 100 metres withoutstopping to catch their breath. When you look at it like that, how couldthey not deserve compensation?https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2016-03-06-silicosis-compensation-a-triumph-
for-justice-but-now-for-the-bigger-fight/
Miners Dilemma
Way Forward
Strengthening of national policies for health at work and developmentof policy tools.
Each country should include, in its national programme on occupationalhealth,
training of sufficient numbers of experts to implement the nationalprogramme and to ensure sufficient personnel resources for OSH.
There must be a renewed attention to action-oriented OSH researches.These would eventually lead to the mainstreaming of occupationalhealth and safety practices into the national developmental agenda
“The health problems emerging from liberalized competitive productionprocesses demand that production be organized to meet sustainabledevelopment goals, not only in terms of economic growth, but also inthe development and health of human resources”
Protection and PreventionPreventative
Culture+ve OSH
Values
Generative/
Comprehensive
Pro-active
Good Leadership &Management
