Successful One Percent Safer Bursary applicants welcomed to IIRSM

Risk and safety professionals who became IIRSM members thanks to a partnership with the charity One Percent Safer were welcomed into the Institute during a virtual celebration.

Successful One Percent Safer Bursary applicants were joined online by representatives of the two organisations, IIRSM Branches and Government or industry bodies in their respective localities in an official launch of a ground-breaking initiative to enhance safety standards in five emerging or developing countries.

Some 100 risk and safety professionals from across India, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria and Pakistan are now IIRSM Affiliate members thanks to funding from One Percent Safer, a charity dedicated to cutting workplace fatalities through marginal gains in safety and health. On 15 June 2022, many of them joined the IIRSM team and One Percent Safer representatives, including Chair and Founder Prof Andrew Sharman, for a virtual presentation and welcome to the Institute.

IIRSM CEO Phillip Pearson said: “There’s a real need for information and support for countries across the world and I hope this is the start of something, an ongoing initiative to support the aims of both One Percent Safer and the Institute. It’s a pleasure to welcome you all into the membership of IIRSM. We want to provide you with all the support you need to help make the world of work a safer place.”

One Percent Safer Chair and Founder Prof Andrew Sharman said: “I’m really excited with this partnership that we’ve started with IIRSM. It has been a pleasure to work with Phillip and everyone at IIRSM to create this bursary. And welcome to all successful applicants to this fantastic organisation.

“Nearly 2.8 million die each year because of a workplace injury or illness. That’s about one person every 10 seconds. If we all do just one thing each day, to improve workplace safety by just one percent, then we can protect thousands more lives. This partnership with IIRSM and our Bursary is a huge step in the right direction.”

In each of the five countries represented in this first tranche of applications, IIRSM has a branch of volunteers who give their time to helping the Institute advance risk and safety management.

Egypt Branch Chair Kareem Atef told attendees: “I would like to congratulate our successful members. It’s a great opportunity to improve their skills and talents. On this occasion, I would like to thank One Percent Safer for their funding and leadership in improving safety worldwide.”

Speaking on the chat during the event, Seth Akumani, from Ghana, said: “As one of the beneficiaries of the bursary, I express my appreciation to IIRSM. I’m learning a lot and I pledge to contribute my One Percent Safer bursary to making the world safer.”

IIRSM thanked government and industry representatives on the call, who included Eng Tarek Adly, CEO HSE Consultant at PETROJET Company, Dr Lauretta N Adogu, Federal Ministry of Labour, Nigeria, and Mr George Gashon, Deputy Chief Factory Inspector, Factories Inspectorate, Ghana.

For more details on the One Percent Safer Bursary, visit https://www.iirsm.org/one-percent-safer-bursary

For more details on One Percent Safer, visit https://onepercentsafer.com