The Best Practice on Raising Public Awareness For Developing Countries
Introduction
The main problem of the developing countries in terms of occupational safety and health is ignorance and insensitiveness. These two factors determine concepts from preventive measures to be taken in the working environment to workers’ level of education and consciousness. The biggest shortcoming in the developing countries in this field is insufficiency or absence of public or non-governmental institutionalisation.
Methods
The first step on the road to success is good practice examples. The aim is to provide universal lessons from the studies and priciples of Fişek Institute that proved its legacy in the field of health, environment and safety which is a non-governmental organisaiton-NGO- in Turkey.
Results
Fisek Institute-an NGO- has always been a pioneer in many projects in this field in its 26 years of bright history. These studies are as follows:
- Common occupational health unit and safety consultancy for small and medium size enterprizes
- Risk analysis and occupational safety and health education
- Turkey’s first and only occupational safety and health library
- Turkey’s first, broadest and most visited occupational safety and health web site (www.isguvenligi.net)
- Radio speaches, conferences
- Turkey’s longest running occupational safety and health magazine (published every 2 months reached its 100th issue)
These studies have never been unanswered. Fişek Institute’s good practice models have always been used in legislations and also been used as a guidance matterial for educational purposes. It has also inspired the society to create better examples.
With regard to these studies Fişek Institute,
- is chosen to The Best Practices Exhibition in United Nations Conference on Human Settlements in 1996. (Habitat II, İstanbul)
- honored with Presidential Appreciation Award in 1996.
- is a member of National Occupational Safety and Health Council appointed by The Ministry of Labour and Social Security between the years 2005-2008.
Discussion
Examples of good practices made by NGOs with the participation of society creates a double dimensional achievement. In one way, the society becomes more sensitive, the other way society protects its piece or product and shows effort to enhance it. Presentation and multiplication of these good examples might be a solution to overcome the difficulties in practice in developing countries.
Key Words
Public awareness, best practice, developing countries