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BOHESI

Banana Occupational Health & Safety Initiative

Home » Our Projects » Banana Occupational Health and Safety Initiative (BOHESI)

The Banana Occupational Health and Safety Initiative (BOHESI) is a pilot project being implemented in Ecuador and Cameroon with an unprecedented involvement of public and private sector actors, as well as civil society, at local and international levels. Amongst its key outcomes, it counts with ground-breaking transformations relating to labour rights concerns for banana workers in the field of occupational health and safety (OHS).

Only in Ecuador, the institutional impacts achieved by BOHESI activities have the potential to reach 163,039 hectares of banana farms, which are distributed amongst 4,787 small to large producers. These impacts will potentially benefit up to 220,000 workers employed in the Ecuadorian banana sector directly and 2 to 2.5 million indirectly (MAG, 2015).

In Cameroon, the industry actors involved – both company and trade union – represent the entire national banana export sector, reaching approximately 8,000 hectares of banana farms and at least 14,000 workers employed directly in the industry.

Bearing this in mind, it is important to highlight the key achievements and future steps of the BOHESI project, as they can provide key learnings for the future of OHS activities in the banana industry on a global scale.

The initiative, inaugurated in 2014 and coordinated by Solidaridad, Banana Link and the World Banana Forum Secretariat, has counted on the Ecuadorian public sector, through the main intervention of the Ministry of Labour (MoL), in the compilation of legislation, the writing of technical notes, and content review; in addition, the support of the Ministry of Agriculture (MAG) and the Ecuadorian Institute of Social Security (IESS), which have supported in the review of the contents. In turn, the collaborators of BOHESI, in addition to the members of the WBF, have contributed by providing private manuals, content review and opinions. The initiative has also been supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO), in addition to the Social Protection Division of the FAO (ESP).

BOHESI has been financed mainly by the Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), established by the Dutch government, which is itself financed by various European governments. The initiative has also counted on financial contributions from: Tesco, Fairtrade International (FLO), Compagnie Frutière, PHP, IPL/ASDA, REWE, Jumbo, Fyffes and AgroAmerica; and match / in-kind contributions from Solidaridad, the WBF Secretariat, AEBE, Compagnie Frutière, Plantations du Haut Penja (PHP), the PHP Union Platform, Fako Agricultural Workers Union (FAWU), Cameroon Development Company (CDC) and Dole.

Text reproduced from http://www.fao.org/world-banana-forum/projects/bohesi/en/

Why Target Occupational Health & Safety
in The Banana Industry?

Bananas are the most consumed fruit in the world and the global industry equates to over 10 billion dollars per year. However, the largely monoculture production of this fruit involves intensive use of agrochemicals and significant risks to the health and safety of workers, producers and their communities.

To address this priority issue on an industry level, a key number of stakeholders – government, companies, producers, certifiers, trade unions and NGOs – came together under the umbrella of the World Banana Forum (WBF) to form BOHESI. Ultimately, the initiative aims to contribute to a more socially and environmentally sustainable banana production and trade with improved standards of living (in particular, in relation to health and natural resource access) for male and female banana workers, farmers and surrounding communities.

Text reproduced from http://www.fao.org/world-banana-forum/projects/bohesi/en/

BOHESI Achievements

Manual for Occupational Health & Safety in The Banana Sector

One of the fundamental achievements of the initiative to-date has been the development and consensus reached on a Manual on Occupational Health and Safety in the banana industry, which was developed as a result of collaborative tripartite efforts.

In Ecuador, the manual could achieve an institutional transformation within the local banana industry, which has primarily been as a result of the strong involvement and cooperation of key actors including the Ministries of Labour and Agriculture, the Ecuadorian Institute for Social Security (IESS), AEBE (Ecuadorian Banana Exporters Association), private sector partners and civil society organizations (including COLSIBA – Coordinating Body of Latin American Banana and Agro-Industrial Workers Unions), amongst others.

The manual was developed in line with the national legislative framework as well as international requirements. It was be presented as the National Manual on Occupational Health and Safety for the Ecuadorian Banana Sector during the Third Global Conference of the World Banana Forum in November 2017. This activity may contribute to subsequent ongoing collaborative processes for the development of a National Regulation on OHS in the banana sector, but may also ultimately serve as a starting point for the creation of a National Regulation on OHS in the agriculture sector more generally.

After the successful development of the Manual in Ecuador, it has been adapted to be used in the Cameroonian context and reviewed by local companies (PHP and CDC) and trade union (FAWU and PHP Union Platform) partners.

The tripartite development process has resulted in a ‘best practice’ manual for the industry in Cameroon, which can be easily adapted to the local context in different countries of production.

Tripartite Dialogue on Ohs – Towards the Ratification of ILO Convention 184

In Ecuador, the WBF has promoted tripartite collaboration since the launch of the initiative, bearing tangible results, in respect to both the development and consensus on the Manual, as well as the possible ratification of ILO’s Convention 184 on OHS. The ILO has provided its support in the pursuit of these activities.

In Cameroon, a Committee on Convention 184 has been set up between local company and trade union banana industry partners, who meet quarterly to discuss the potential ratification and implementation of Convention 184, engage the government in sector level dialogue, and also share practices and learnings on OHS within the framework of BOHESI.

Preparatory Training in Cameroon

Initial training on OHS has been funded and supported by BOHESI and implemented by local trade union partners FAWU and the PHP Union Platform.

The objective has been to raise awareness amongst workers on key OHS issues with respect to Convention 184, strengthen joint-OHS committees, and promote greater company-union collaboration on OHS training and programme implementation. This preparatory training has reached approximately 500 workers and union leaders.

 

BOHESI Training manuals

Spanish


English

French

Activities
for 2017 – 2018

At A National Level

Manual on Occupational Health & Safety

Ecuador – launching of the National Manual on Occupational Health and Safety took place in November 2017, during the Third Global Conference of the World Banana Forum; it will be launched in the national context on 21 May 2018 in Machala, Ecuador, by the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Labour

Cameroon – final review and design of the manual in collaboration with partners, including a full gender review by an OHS expert; the final manual is to be ready for distribution in January 2018

‘Training of Trainers’

Ecuador – OHS representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Labour, the private sector (AEBE), and trade unions will receive training in order to disseminate information amongst the many independent producers and workers in the banana sector. The training, to be coordinated by extension workers of the public sector for the training of small- and medium-sized producers, and the private sector for the training of workers in large plantations, could potentially cover the entire Ecuadorian banana sector. The trainings are to take place in the week of 21-25 May 2018.

Cameroon – company and trade union OHS representatives at PHP and CDC will receive training to be co-facilitated by BOHESI consultants, the IUF and Banana Link.

Training of OHS Committees and Workers at Plantation Level

Tripartite Commissions on OHS

Facilitate the establishment of tripartite commissions to effectively address OHS concerns at a national level, and to further support practical steps towards the ratification and implementation of ILO Convention 184

Project Evaluation

Evaluate the impact of the BOHESI project at a national scale, as well as plan for the continuation and replication of BOHESI activities once the project has ended

At Industry Level

A Tripartite Conference on Occupational Health and Safety in the Banana Sector will be held end of 2018, to:
  • Share the learnings and results of the BOHESI pilot projects in Ecuador and Cameroon
  • Investigate opportunities for the replication of the project in other countries of production
  • Develop an industry strategy on health and safety, as well as for the ratification of ILO Convention 184, to ensure the sustainability of the BOHESI project objectives beyond 2018

 

Official launch of the National Manual on Occupational Health and Safety for the Banana Industry (2017) by Ecuadorian Ministry of Labour and Ministry of Agriculture took place on 21 May 2018 in Machala, Ecuador. The launch of the Manual also resulted in the presentation of a new Ministerial Agreement (No. MDT-2018-0108), signed on 16 May 2018, which establishes the compulsory status of the Manual and the legislations included in it. The event was followed by training sessions for public and private sector actors. 

Expected Outcomes

  • Improvement in occupational health and safety (OHS) prevention, management and control at the plantation and farm level in banana producing countries
  • Effective collaboration on OHS between companies, workers and governments, through joint capacity building programs, as well as the establishment and strengthening of workplace and national tripartite OHS committees
  • Strengthening of tripartite dialogue processes for OHS towards regulatory and institutional changes, and the ratification of ILO’s Convention 184
  • National and industry level progress on OHS through effective collaboration between government and private sector agencies and institutions
  • Development of industry expertise on OHS and prevention and control, including psycho-social risks, gender issues and participatory education methods.

More Of Our Projects


Banana Occupational Health and Safety Initiative (BOHESI)

Education & Empowerment In West Africa

Improving & Increasing Women’s Employment

BananEx (TR4)

Gender Equity Across Supply Chains

Make Fruit Fair

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