Assessment of health and safety management on construction sites in Kenya: a case of construction projects in Nairobi County

Abstract

The construction industry is an important part of the economy in many countries and is often seen as a driver of economic growth especially in developing countries. Owing to its relatively labour intensive nature, construction works provide opportunities for employment for a wide range of people skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled. Despite its importance, construction sites are considered risky with frequent and high accident rates and ill-health problems to workers. However, knowledge on health and safety management and related factors on construction sites in Kenya is not well documented. This study therefore, aims to find out the current practice of health and safety management during project implementation. In pursuing this objective, a descriptive case study research design was used where 30 construction sites in Nairobi County were selected through random sampling. Questionnaires were used for collection of qualitative and quantitative data from site supervisors and workers on NCA registered construction sites and descriptive statistics used for data analysis. The main causes of accidents, injuries and ill health on construction sites are falling from heights, slips, falling objects and handling. The kinds of injuries include wounds and bruises (86%), and fractures and broken bones (50%). According to the workers accidents and injuries had a high impact on construction progress while site managers reported abseentism, loss of public confidence and disruption of work as impacting negatively on the project progress. Although Personal Protective Equipment were present in most of the sites (94.7%) their usage was minimal - use of safety belts (12%), use of gloves (7%), use of foot wear (20%), and use of face masks (6.7%). The factors influencing implementation of health and safety measures at the sites include lack of training of workers (96%), lack of employee participation (88%), lack of health and safety committees at the sites (97%), lack of commitment from management (94%) and absence of health and safety management policy in 95 % of the sites. The study recommends use of a more proactive and integrated management mechanism to enforce the existing safety and health regulations in construction sites, in order to prevent accidents, injuries and ill health on the sites.