The Law That Puts Zambia Workers First and the Minister Who Made It Happen
On 17 January 2026, Zambia sent a clear message to Zambia workers and the wider African region that worker safety is no longer optional, sectoral, or outdated.
With President Hakainde Hichilema’s assent to the Occupational Health and Safety Act No. 16 of 2025, the country replaced a 15-year-old framework with a modern law that reflects today’s economy and tomorrow’s ambitions.
At the centre of this milestone stands Hon. Brenda Mwika Tambatamba, Minister of Labour and Social Security, whose passion and persistence helped turn long-standing concern into enforceable national protection.
For years, Zambia’s Occupational Health and Safety Act of 2010 served as a foundational tool. But while progressive in its time, it struggled to keep pace with a diversified economy. In practice, protections were concentrated in mining, enforcement reach was limited, and worker participation mechanisms were unevenly applied. Too many workers outside traditional high-risk sectors remained vulnerable.
The new Act corrects these gaps decisively.
By extending occupational health and safety protection across all sectors of the economy, strengthening enforcement authority, and mandating Health and Safety Committees in every workplace with equal employer employee representation, Zambia has reset its national approach to workplace risk. The law also repositions the Occupational Health and Safety Institute to operate in closer alignment with international best practice and ILO principles.
This is not incremental reform. It is structural change.
Such transformation does not happen by presidential assent alone. It requires ministerial leadership that sustains momentum through consultation fatigue and legislative complexity. Minister Tambatamba’s leadership ensured that worker safety was treated not merely as regulatory compliance, but as a human right and an economic necessity.
This moment also carries deeper significance. Nearly fourteen month after AfriSAFE (Africa Safety Congress) headlined by Zambia Sugar convened government, regulators, and industry leaders to confront preventable workplace risks, the country has demonstrated what meaningful follow-through looks like. AfriSAFE was designed as a catalyst and Zambia’s new OHS law stands as proof that dialogue, when sustained, can become policy.
Industry leadership will be critical to translating law into lived safety. In this regard, Zambia Sugar leadership deserves commendation for its proactive stance on occupational safety and health, demonstrating that strong OSH systems strengthen productivity, resilience, and corporate credibility.
By replacing an outdated framework with a modern, enforceable, and inclusive law, Zambia now positions itself as a regional reference point for worker protection and sustainable development.
At HSENations, we commend President Hichilema for decisive national leadership, hail Minister Brenda Mwika Tambatamba for turning passion into policy, and encourage industry leaders to match this moment with action.Because the true measure of this law will not be its text but the number of workers who return home safely because of it.
Watch AfriSAFE 2024 in Zambia
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