By Dotun Ibiwoye

Federal Government is set to implement the  National Policy on Occupational Safety and Health while creating awareness on occupational health  in Nigeria.

Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, who disclosed this in Lagos, sai occupational and environmental health is the identification and control of the risks arising from physical, chemical, and other workplace hazards in order to establish and maintain a safe and healthy working environment.

Speaking through the Director, Public Health Dr. Bridget Okoeguale, at the Annual Conference and AGM of the Society of Occupational and Environmental Health Physicians of Nigeria, SOEHPON, affirmed that just 5-10 percent of workers in developing countries have adequate occupational health services compared to 10-25 percent  in developed countries as notedt by the International Labour Organization, ILO.

National Chairman, SOEHPON, Dr. Dominic Ukpong, expressed dismay over government’s failure to draw from the wealth of  professional resources of  occupational and environmental health physicians, to develop a critical segment of  the nation’s national health policy.

He called for better demonstration, responsibility and commitment, towards the protection of this vulnerable segment of the society, through proper legislation and enforcement.