Inculcating Health Safety and Environment Knowledge in Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Institutions: A call for Action

A. M. Na'inna

Abstract


Occupational accidents and disasters usually occur as a result of unsafe act and unsafe condition in Nigeria. Major disasters frequently encountered in Nigeria are fires, oil and gas explosions, building collapses and environmental pollution. This necessitates the need for Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) awareness and compliance in all workplaces and even residential areas in Nigeria. It is much needed in Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Institutions (TEIs) since it provides the bulk of the nation’s workforce to various sectors of economy at semi-skilled and skilled levels. The application of the HSE knowledge by the workforce from TEIs is expected to eliminate or reduce accidents to as low as reasonably practicable in workplaces thereby enhancing economic growth and hence national development. Nigeria as of August 2021 has 511 duly accredited TEIs comprising 174, 152 and 185 universities, polytechnics and colleges of education respectively. Regardless of the substantial number of TEIs in Nigeria, only 3 universities and 4 polytechnics offer core academic programmes on HSE. Also, despite the rationale behind General Studies (GST/GNS) for all students of various disciplines, none of the TEIs impart on HSE. In view of the aforementioned, it is therefore recommended that the Federal Ministry of Education should encourage more TEIs in Nigeria to mount core HSE programmes, mandate TEIs in Nigeria to develop GST/GNS curriculum on HSE contents and equally mandate TEIs in Nigeria to ensure that the proposed GST/GNS curriculum on HSE contents becomes compulsory to each student. Furthermore, it is recommended that heads of Nigeria’s TEIs should inculcate HSE based knowledge to staff and students in their respective institutions. 


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