Why International Safety Training Fails in Africa and the Urgent Need for a Local OHS Standard by Femi Da-silva

Across Africa, occupational health and safety (OHS) appears to be making progress. Social Media feeds are filled with photos and videos of African professionals proudly holding internationally recognized HSE certificates. On paper, it looks like success. But on the ground, inside the mines of the Copperbelt, the oil and gas fields of Angola’s Cabinda region, and the fast paced construction sites of Lagos, those same “world class” safety trainings often fail to deliver real protection.

The uncomfortable truth is this: most international safety training programs are designed for environments that do not reflect African realities. When safety systems are not localized, they don’t just underperform they put lives at risk.

The Hidden Cost of Copy-Paste Safety Systems in Africa

To understand why Africa needs a localized OHS standard, we must examine where global safety models consistently break down in local contexts.

1. Workplace Hierarchy and the Myth of “Stop Work Authority”
Global Safety Principle:
Every worker has the right and responsibility to stop unsafe work immediately.

African Workplace Reality:
In many African cultures, workplace hierarchy is deeply ingrained. A junior worker challenging a supervisor or senior foreman may be seen as disrespectful, insubordinate, or even confrontational.

The Outcome:
Workers notice hazards but remain silent to protect their jobs and social standing. Unsafe acts continue until incidents occur.

The Local Solution:
Rather than importing rigid “Stop Work Authority” concepts, an African OHS standard should promote Peer-to-Peer Safety Consultations a culturally respectful approach that enables risk escalation without undermining authority structures.

2. Emergency Response Assumptions That Don’t Exist
Global Safety Principle:
In an emergency, contact public emergency services and wait for professional responders.

African Workplace Reality:
In many regions, emergency medical services are underfunded, delayed by traffic congestion, or simply unavailable especially in remote or industrial locations.

The Outcome:
Training that assumes a 5–10 minute ambulance response becomes dangerously misleading. In real scenarios, help may take hours.

The Local Solution:
African safety standards must prioritize Internal Emergency and Trauma Care Capacity. Site supervisors and safety leads should be trained as first responders because in Africa, the site is often the first and only line of care.

3. PPE Standards That Ignore Market Realities
Global Safety Principle:
Use only specific internationally certified personal protective equipment (PPE).

African Workplace Reality:
High import costs, weak enforcement, and supply chain limitations mean that certified PPE is often unavailable or unaffordable particularly for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

The Outcome:
When the “approved” solution is unattainable, workers frequently use no protection at all.

The Local Solution:
Africa needs standards that recognize Safe-Enough Local Alternatives (SELAs) practical, affordable PPE solutions that offer real protection and can be consistently deployed.

Why Africa Needs Its Own Occupational Health and Safety Standard

A localized African OHS standard is not about lowering global benchmarks. It is about making safety standards achievable, and effective within African contexts. This shift would move the industry from symbolic compliance to real risk reduction.

ESG, Investment, and the Missed Opportunity for Africa
Global investors increasingly assess companies using ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) metrics. Unfortunately, many African businesses are penalized for failing to meet safety indicators designed for Western operating environments.

A credible, high-level African OHS standard would:

• Provide investors with context-relevant safety benchmarks
• Enable African companies to demonstrate ethical and responsible operations
• Improve investment confidence without forcing unrealistic compliance models

This is a strategic opportunity for regulators, industry bodies, and continental institutions.

From Certification to Competence: The Way Forward
Africa does not need fewer safety certificates. It needs contextualized safety competence.
Imported templates cannot solve local risks. But African-designed solutions can.

Africa already has skilled safety professionals growing industrial capacity and a clear understanding of its own operational realities. What is missing is a recognized, continent-driven OHS framework that reflects how work is actually done.

The future of safety in Africa will not be built by copying systems that were never designed for African conditions.
It will be built when Africa stops importing safety models and starts exporting safety solutions.
Is it time for an AU-certified occupational health and safety standard?

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