Enhancing Occupational Safety, Health, and Social Protection in Rwanda's Construction Sector

To address these issues, the Rwanda Building Code serves as a crucial instrument for promoting and enforcing national legislation aimed at safeguarding public health, safety, and general welfare on construction sites.

The construction sector in Rwanda is rapidly expanding, primarily in urban areas, and employs around 360,000 workers. However, a significant portion of these workers operate informally, facing considerable health and safety risks and lacking essential protection. To address these issues, the Rwanda Building Code serves as a crucial instrument for promoting and enforcing national legislation aimed at safeguarding public health, safety, and general welfare on construction sites.

Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Provisions

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has played a pivotal role in revising the Rwanda Building Code to align with international standards for preventing major occupational risks. Key enhancements include:

Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination: Measures to combat harassment and sexual discrimination at construction sites.

Hazardous Material Exposure: Protocols to mitigate risks associated with exposure to hazardous materials.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Ensuring the availability and proper use of PPE for all workers.

Training and Awareness: Providing access to safety and health training for construction workers.

Health and Safety Officers: Appointment of designated officers to oversee and coordinate health and safety measures on construction sites.

Access to Social Protection and Worker Welfare

The revised building code emphasizes social security coverage for all construction workers, regardless of their nationality, contract type, duration, or salary level. This inclusion aims to:

Raise Awareness: Highlight the obligation to cover casual workers under social security, granting them equal labor and social security rights as formal workers.

Timely Wage Payments: Reinforce the legal requirement for timely wage payments.

Rest Periods and Breaks: Ensure adequate rest periods and breaks for workers.

Integrated Inspection Mechanism

Rwanda has a framework in place for enforcing labor standards and ensuring compliance through various agencies:

Labor Inspection: Guided by ILO Convention 81, ratified by Rwanda in 1980, which outlines labor inspection responsibilities.

Social Security and OSH Compliance: Monitored by the Rwanda Social Security Board’s inspection unit.

Building Safety Standards: Enforced through the Rwanda Building Code (2019) and related guidelines.

To improve compliance and coherence among these authorities, the ILO, Rwanda Housing Authority (RHA), Ministry of Labour, and Rwanda Social Security Board are exploring enhanced cooperation between their inspection departments.

The ILO has also assisted in developing a simplified and comprehensive inspection checklist that covers key areas such as:

Occupational health examinations

Provision of PPE

Worker registration in the social security scheme

Employment contracts and payment methods

Next Steps

The legal tools' validation workshop organized by the RHA from 10 to 13 June 2024, approved these changes. The subsequent steps include:

Discussion and Adoption: Reviewing the revised Building Code for final adoption.

Official Publication: Publishing the revised code in the Official Gazette to formalize its status as a legal tool in the Construction and Housing Industry.

These revisions aim to enhance worker safety, health, and social protection in Rwanda's construction sector, aligning with international standards and improving overall working conditions.