The Lagos State Government has organised a one-day training for artisans and other workers in the construction industry as part of efforts to ensure a safe and healthy work environment.

The Director-General, Lagos State Safety Commission, Mr Lanre Mojola, said this on Thursday during the training held in Alausa, Ikeja.

Mojola, who was represented by the Technical Adviser to the Commission, Mr Seun Awojobi, noted that the construction sector is one of the most risk-prone sectors in the world.

He said, “We have been riddled with a lot of building collapses and we have seen lives lost and property destroyed, hence it goes to say that the construction sector is one of the most risk-prone sectors in the world.

“Even with the deepening of occupational safety and health culture, there is still a lot to be done and we see it everywhere we go; we see many artisans climbing with only their slippers, or not wearing hard hats or working at heights without any harness hoping that a supernatural force will keep them safe, but at LSC, our mandate is to ensure safety of lives and property through evaluation, engagement and enforcement.”

The Director, Safety Training Education, Skill and Development, Mrs Esther George, explained that the government, through the commission, intends to reduce incidence of collapsed building to the barest in the state.

“The training is part of the commission’s Zero Accident Campaign which aims to drastically reduce accidents that can result in injury, fatalities, property damage that might lead to lawsuits, reputational damage and compensation and through collaboration with stakeholders and continuous sensitisation,” she stated.