OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENT (OHSE)

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENT (OHSE)

The Occupational Health, Safety and Environment (OHSE) has been existing in the OHCSF as a division under Employee and Industrial Relations Department, until 2017 when it was made a full fledge department to assume numerous roles such as:

 ·         Co-ordinating and promoting a safe and healthy work environment for Civil Servants;

 ·         Providing and regulating recreational and other social facilities for Civil Servants;

 ·         Promoting International best practices in occupational health and safety in the Public Service work environment;

 ·         Initiating processes and programme that will promote better work place occupational health and safety for Public Servants in line with extant legislation;

 ·         Liaising with relevant agencies to promote safe work Environment for Public Servants in all MDAs;

 ·         Providing General guidelines for Health Safety and Environment in Public Service;

 ·         Reviewing all safety and health policies and procedures in Public Service;

 ·         Reviewing employee complaints regarding safety and health hazards;

 ·         Providing secretariat for medical request by MDAs;

 ·         Promoting the spirit of sportsmanship and fostering unity among Public Servants through the Federation of Public Service Games;

 ·         Supervising Public Service Clubs for the benefits of Public Servants; and

 ·         Coordinating the affairs of Persons with Disability (PWDs) Service wide.

 The Department has two divisions namely: Health, Safety and Environment

 With high mortality rate in the Service amongst Civil Servants, the Office is leaving no stone unturned in ensuring that Civil Servants get the right awareness concerning their health and work habits. Sporting activities, health talk and facilities are being made available for Civil Servants use. Ministries, extra-Ministerial Departments and Agencies (MDAs) are being encouraged to emulate the OHCSF in providing such facilities for the wellbeing of their workers. Public Service Clubs are being revamped, resuscitated, and put in use. In December, 2022, that of Yola was commissioned for use.

 It is now very clear that no Civil Servant deserves to die of any manageable ailment due to paucity of fund. The Office through the Department of OHSE act as a secretariate for medical requests by MDAs. It facilitates requests to source for medical funds domiciled under the Federal Ministry of Finance with the approval of the Ministry of Health.

 The increased morbidity rate of Nigerians, particularly, the Civil Servants in recent time has necessitated the recently organised one day Interactive Session for all Health Maintenance Officers (HMOs) in the country by the OHCSF, where three parties – the enrolees (Civil Servants represented by the OHCSF), the HMOs and the Insurance health regulatory body - NHIA shared thoughts, challenges and chat the way forward on better, affordable and quality health care to Nigerians and the Civil Servants in particular.

It is no longer news that with the help of this Office, monthly jogging for Civil Servants is sustained. This underscores the importance of exercise in promoting wellbeing and productive workforce in the country. In the recently held 2023 Civil Service Week, the HoCSF and all the Federal Permanent Secretaries joined the Federal Public Servants on Aerobics and Sporting events. It was a memorable event, as the HoCSF with her Permanent Secretaries (a team) engaged the Directors of Ministries, Departments and Agencies on a football match and won with alone goal. They also had a 100 metre race.