14-09-2023

HE Mr. Jameel bin Mohammed Ali Humaidan, Minister of Labour, inaugurated a specialized workshop entitled: "Review and discussion of the draft profile for occupational safety and health in the Kingdom of Bahrain", organised by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, from 13-14 September 2023. This will be done with the participation of government agencies related to occupational safety and health in Bahrain, representatives of the three production parties, major companies that have representation in the Occupational Safety and Health Council, in addition to civil society institutions, training institutes and universities. In his speech, Humaidan stressed that the government of the Kingdom of Bahrain has paid special attention to occupational safety and health and the protection of the work environment. It has entrusted upon itself to adopt systems and legislation and has established qualified and trained regulatory bodies to ensure the proper implementation and compliance of these methods, which are aimed towards more effective levels of labour protection for the workforce. The Minister also pointed to the importance of holding such specialised technical activities as they address all practices related to occupational safety and health at the national level in order to develop the procedures of all relevant executive agencies in Bahrain and to propose more necessary regulations to enhance protection for workers. The Minister of Labour stressed that the rapid scientific and technological developments witnessed by the world necessitate exerting more efforts to create a generation of cadres and competencies in the field of occupational safety and health. Accordingly, they will be required to have the ability to keep pace with the changes in the system of standards for measuring skill and competence and focus on updating, developing, raising the quality of work and production continuously at the national level. For her part, Ms. Sophia Kagan, ILO Regional Director for Arab States, stressed the importance of production cooperation to promote occupational health and safety principles in the workplace. She expressed the organisation’s continuous endeavor to provide technical support to develop occupational safety and health systems and raise the efficiency of workers, in addition to contributing to the study of relevant decisions and regulations. The ILO Director also pointed to the need for joint action to avoid the risks of work in various climatic conditions, including those witnessed by the region, especially during the summer, where high temperatures, and the risks of unfortunate occupational injuries, which negatively affect productivity and workers' health. The event comes in the context of the Kingdom of Bahrain's commitment to the principles related to the fundamental rights of the ILO Occupational Health and Safety Convention 1981 No. (155), in addition to the promotional framework for occupational health and safety and the Health Convention No. 2066 (No. 187). It will also review the draft occupational safety and health file and fill the existing gaps in order to finalise the process of drafting this file and agree on the next steps in line with the national occupational safety and health policy. The workshop also comes within the framework of implementing the ILO's directions on the preparation of national programs and files for occupational safety and health, analyzing the national situation of occupational safety and health by identifying relevant legislation and practices, and discussing the necessary recommendations on improvements that can be made in the national system of occupational safety and health. The workshop will review ILO standards on occupational safety and health, develop a file and strategy in this regard, and discuss issues related to heat stress, workers’ housing units and issues specific to the construction sector (work in the field of altitude). During the workshop, several government agencies and other relevant authorities gave presentations on their occupational safety and health practices.