Cambodia will mark World Day for Safety and Health at Work on Friday April 30th with an event focusing on the theme "Knowing Your Health and Safety Risks and Preventing Workplace Accidents"
Cambodia's chosen topic compliments the global theme for the 2010 Day chosen by the organizer, the International Labour Organization (ILO); "Emerging Risks and New Patterns of Prevention in a Changing World of Work".
The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MoLVT) extends a safety campaign to the provincial level and will mark the day with a march in Kampot Province. More than 350 representatives of the Government employers and workers will attend the celebration which will begin with the march along Kampot river carrying specially-printed flags with the campaign theme, placards and banners and will assemble in front of the Provincial Government Office to enjoy speeches and safety shows. Dozens more banners and posters will be hung over the main streets of Kampot City, to raise public awareness of the importance of occupational safety and health.
The day's events will be presided over by H.E. Dr. Huy Han Song, Secretary of State, who will also speak on behalf of the Minister of Labour and Vocational Training, Mr. Duong Siv Vuth, Deputy Governor of Kampot, and Dr. Tsuyoshi Kawakami, Senior Specialist on Occupational Safety and Health of the ILO Decent Work Team for East and South-East Asia and the Pacific in Bangkok, will speak on behalf of the Organization.
The event is also being financially supported by the ILO/Korea Programme, the ILO's Better Factories Cambodia Project (BFC), and the MoLVT.
"Emerging health and safety risks come unnoticed by the conventional way and beyond human common senses. We need to have an innovative approach to combating the risks and to educate workers a new, practical preventive measure" said Dr. Huy Han Song, Secretary of State in charge of OSH, HIV/AIDS and Social Security, MoLVT. The Royal Government of Cambodia places a highest priority to improve people's quality of life. Ensuring safe, healthy and productive working environments is a prerequisite for this purpose. Cambodia is implementing the stronger national OSH system to provide adequate OSH protection to all workers."
"The event aims to put safety and health on everyone's mind for today and to promote a safety culture in workplace in the country" said Dr. Leng Tong, Director of Occupational Safety and Health Department (MoLVT), citing nearly 3,000 workers inflicted with serious work-related accidents in Cambodia in 2009.
"This is the fifth year that Cambodia is marking World Day which shows their continuing commitment to occupational safety and health," said Dr. Kawakami. "But we mustn't be complacent. We should strengthen our efforts to reach more and more workers and employers at grassroots workplaces and provide them with practical support to prevent accidents".
It is estimated that more than 1,500 persons in Cambodia die each year as a result of work-related accidents, equivalent to four people a day. An estimated 1.6 million serious workplace accidents take place annually.
