The Federal Government on Wednesday trains 500 civil servants across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), at a one-day sensitisation programme to promote healthy living in the nation’s civil service.
The sensitisation programme on ‘Optimising health and wellness for improved productivity’, organised by the office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF), is with the aim to promote work productivity.
The programme has ‘Optimising Health and Well-being for Improved Productivity’, as its theme.
Mr Mahmud Kambari, Permanent Secretary Service Welfare Office, office of the HOCSF, speaking, explained the initiative was in line with Pillar six of Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan (FCSSIP25), which aims at enhancing value proposition for civil servants.
Kambari said the Federal Government had acknowledged the increasing mortality rates among civil servants, adding that the need to urgently address the situation brought about the idea of sensitisation programme to educate civil servants.
“As we gather here, we are confronted with a sobering reality of the increasing mortality rates of our colleagues in the civil service and the need to urgently address the situation.
“Many of these deaths are directly linked to occupational factors.
“As I review the several death notifications that come to my desk every day for death benefit claims, a glaring truth emerges, hence the need to address some preventable sicknesses including Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in civil service.
“And also address sudden deaths amongst the workforce, ” Kambari explained.
According to him, NCDs have become a global public health challenge, casting a shadow on the health and efficiency of workforce.
The challenge, he said was compounded by the stress and sedentary nature of civil service work which needed not just discussion on causes but to actively seek solutions and strategies to overcome them.
Also, Mrs Comfort Adeosun, Director Occupational Health, Safety and Environment, office of the HOCSF, urged MDAs to show more concern over health related issues and well-being of their employees.
“Globally, the new trend now is that, the employees wellness is very important and we don’t have to play with it any longer. “It is no longer business as usual for organisations not to be concern about the health and well-being of their staff.
“This is because the management seems to look at improved performance and productivity but overlooking at the human beings, who are the ones running the system.
“Even when you are adopting technologies to work, it still takes a human being to operate those systems. So our focus is on educating the civil servants how to take care of themselves, “she said.
Adeosun, however, used the event to advise both government and private organisations to create recreational facilities, organising regular medical checks, organising mental health counselling among others for their employees.
“When an employee is assured of an organisation being concerned about their well-being, it’s going to boost their morale and it is going to improve their psychological contract to that organisation, “director explained.
Meanwhile, Mrs Al-Quadiriyyah Adeola, a participant from office of Auditor-General for the Federal, expressed delight on the initiative by the government, saying the initiative would serve as an additional support to the public servants.
“My wish is that government should put in place full opportunities in helping public servants as there are a lot of health challenges among them.
“We hope government will help us in providing more ways besides the little contributions on National Health Insurance Authority to provide medical assistance to public servants, ” she said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event featured medical screening of the participants on high blood sugar level, hypertension, and diabetes among other health issues. NAN
