NSITF Boss Urges Workplace Safety Compliance

By Chinedu Echianu

The Managing Director, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund, (NSITF) Barrister Oluwaseun Falaye, has enjoined employers of labour in Nigeria to be intentional about compliance with workplace safety and health regulations as he said that the future is determined by today’s choices.

He made the call as the NSITF-NECA Safe Workplace Intervention Project kicks off in Lagos.

Speaking while giving a welcome address at a Lagos Stakeholders’ Interactive Enlightenment Forum and Awards Ceremony, Barrister Faleye said, “the future of work in Nigeria will be defined by how much we protect our workforce while driving productivity and growth.”

“At the core of the Employees’ Compensation Act 2010 is a simple but profound truth: every worker matters. No job is worth a life. And no organization can sustainably thrive when safety is treated as an afterthought,’ he stated.

Barrister Faleye urged organizations that are yet to fully align with safety compliance to avail themselves of the event to do so.

He stressed that no job is worth a life, and no organisation can sustainably thrive when safety is treated as an afterthought.

Speaking on the theme of the program: ‘Enhancing Workplace Safety, Strengthening Compliance, Celebrating Excellence’, the NSITF MD said “the theme captures the full spectrum of our engagement today. Compliance must be seen not as a regulatory obligation alone, but as a strategic business decision that safeguards human capital, reduces operational risk, and enhances organisational reputation”.

According to him, SWIP has, over the years, evolved into a strategic platform for driving awareness, strengthening compliance, and fostering collaboration around occupational safety and health, adding that the forum represents a critical interface between policy, practice, and performance, where employers, workers, regulators, and partners engage constructively on how to build safer and more productive workplaces.

“Today’s gathering is not merely an information session; it is a shared commitment. It reflects our collective resolve to ensure that economic growth does not come at the expense of worker safety, and that productivity is anchored on environments that protect lives, dignity, and livelihoods,” he stated.

Speaking on the awards, Faleye said, “today, we also take time to celebrate organisations that have distinguished themselves through demonstrable commitment to occupational safety and health.
These awards are not just acknowledgements; they are benchmarks. They signal that compliance is achievable, that safety delivers value, and that excellence in worker protection deserves recognition”.

The NSITF boss thanked the parent Ministry of Labour and Employment, NECA, participating organizations, and other partners for the success of the event and reiterated the Fund’s commitment to “deepen collaborations, strengthen compliance, and promote a culture where every workplace is a safe workplace.”

Explaining the SWIP forum, Director General , NECA, Mr Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, said safety in the work place should be taken as a fundamental issue and core responsibility of employers.
He said while employers are pursuing maximum or optimum profit, safety of their workers should also be priorities.

He described workplace safety as a life-and-death matter that is still treated with dangerous nonchalance by both employers and employees, despite its far-reaching consequences.
The NECA DG expressed confidence that the initiative would not only reward excellence but also reset the national conversation on workplace safety.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Maigari Dingyadi, in a keynote address at the 2025 SWIP kick-off, said the Safe Workplace Intervention Project is a collaborative occupational health and safety initiative designed to enhance workplace safety across Nigeria through structured audits, engagement and recognition.

He said the occupational health and safety is everyone’s responsibility, adding that the ministry cannot do it alone.

He commended NECA and NSITF for sustaining SWIP, describing it as a model of effective collaboration between government and the private sector.

In a presentation titled “Employees’ Compensation Act, 2010: The Journey so Far,” the Executive Director Operations at NSITF, Mojisola Ali-Macauley said that Section 3 of the ECA 2010 makes provisions for Occupational Safety and Health as part of NSITF’s mandate.

She revealed that Scheme has a little less than two hundred thousands organizations translating to around eight million employees under its cover. She further stated that 142,745 persons have so far benefited in one form or another from the Scheme.

Seven companies in the Lagos Region received award for maintaining a high standard of Occupational Health and Safety in their workplaces. While Chivita and Nigeria Breweries received an ambulance each, five others received infrastructure OSH awards of first aid kits, PPEs and other safety gadgets for the workplace.

The SWIP, a partnership project between the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund and Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association, was designed to promote voluntary compliance with workplace safety standards and regulations by organizations through creation of awareness, safety audit and motivation in form of awards to exemplary organisations. It adopts a method that downplays enforcement.

The NSITF-NECA SWIP Awards 2025 is scheduled for Lagos and Enugu, while the grand final will be in Abuja.