Occupational Safety and Environmental Risks Scenario of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs): An Analysis of the Situation in Harare Chemical Industries, Zimbabwe
N. Mudavanhu, P. Dzomba, C. Mudavanhu, S. Mazorodze
Chemical Science International Journal · pp. 98–110 · Published 9 Mar 2013
10.9734/ACSJ/2013/2759Abstract
Aims: To analyze the nature and peculiarities of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Zimbabwe chemical industry with reference to safety and environmental risks. Study Design: This study took a survey approach. Place and Duration of Study: Graniteside (GR), Willowvale (WV), Southerton (ST), Workington (WN) and Msasa (MS) industrial areas in Harare Zimbabwe between June 2011 and October 2012. Methodology: We administered a survey-questionnaire to collect primary data from respondents coming from 49 SMEs using proportional sampling (7 GR, 10 ST, 12 WN, 11 WV and 9 MS); 6 Large Enterprises (LEs) and 5 key informants from government and industry associations. Other data was obtained from document analysis from libraries and websites of industrial association and observations made on industrial visits. Results: Results showed that 85.6%, 93.8%, 95.9% and 93.8% of SMEs did not have Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) policies, risk analysis strategy, staff welfare facilities and did not keep accident records respectively. Moreover, most premises were not appropriate for chemical handling; processing and storage due to the fact that the enterprises had shunned government designated areas. The LEs interviewed had comprehensive approach to safety and environmental management, though most of them struggle mainly with risk analysis. Analysis showed that the current SME OHS scenario was due to lack of national legislation governing their operation. This results in SME operations being informal, up to individual organization’s discretion and without regard to OSH and environmental management. Conclusion: Though SMEs largely contribute to Zimbabwean economy and to output of chemical industry, their operations are out rightly OSH and environmentally irresponsible. The OSH scenario of SMEs could be improved by involvement of all stakeholders in policy formulation and support. Collaboration, information disclosure and benchmarking with long established large enterprises can enhance SMEs OHS and environmental management.
References (14)
- 1 Working in small enterprises – Is there a special risk? [DOI]
- 2 Small enterprise owners’ accident causation attribution and prevention [DOI]
- 3 The main benefits associated with health and safety management systems certification in Portuguese small and medium enterprises post quality management system certification [DOI]
- 4 Economic evaluation of OSH and its way to SMEs: A constructive review [DOI]
- 5 Workplace Health Understandings and Processes in Small Businesses: A Systematic Review of the Qualitative Literature [DOI]
- 6 Environmental impact evaluation using a cooperative model for implementing EMS (ISO 14001) in small and medium-sized enterprises [DOI]
- 7 Environmental indicators for small and medium enterprises in the Philippines: An empirical research [DOI]
- 8 Shift schedules on North Sea oil/gas installations: A systematic review of their impact on performance, safety and health [DOI]
- 9 Occupational health and safety management in small and medium-sized enterprises: An overview of the situation in Thailand [DOI]
- 10 Effectiveness of Health and Safety in Small Enterprises: A Systematic Review of Quantitative Evaluations of Interventions [DOI]
- 11 Owner Attitudes and Self Reported Behavior Towards Modified Work After Occupational Injury Absence in Small Enterprises: A Qualitative Study [DOI]
- 12 Process safety challenges for SMEs in China [DOI]
- 13 Applications of a corporate synergy system to promote cleaner production in small and medium enterprises [DOI]
- 14 Small and Medium Size Enterprises (SME) interest in voluntary certification schemes for health and safety management: preliminary results [DOI]
Cited by 6
Tawanda Collins Muzamwese · Sustainability Nexus Forum · 2024
Tawanda Collins Muzamwese, Laura Franco-Garcia, Michiel Heldeweg · Journal of Cleaner Production · 2024
Tapiwa Shabani, Steven Jerie, Takunda Shabani · Life Cycle Reliability and Safety Engineering · 2023
Tawanda Collins Muzamwese · Circular Economy and Sustainability · 2023
Tawanda Collins Muzamwese · Discover Sustainability · 2025
Showing 5 of 6 known citations — external sources report more than can currently be individually listed.
Related research
- Evaluating the Use of 90-90-90 for HIV Policy in the Asian Context — shares topic coverage
- How States Can Drive the Next Era of Climate Management in India: Perspectives in Mainstreaming Climate Actions from Gujarat — shares topic coverage
- Sleeping Patterns among Medical Students in the Middle East: Identifying Areas for Intervention — shares topic coverage
- Peeling the Onion: Public Policy Challenges, Hotspots and Gaps in Contentious Educational Policy Areas — shares topic coverage
- Reduction of Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions to Mitigate Climate Change Impacts — shares topic coverage
Article metrics
Real usage data collected on this platform.
0
Page views
0
PDF downloads
0
Outbound clicks
6
Citations
Views by country
Approximate, from request IP at view time — not citizenship or institution. Countries with fewer than 5 views are grouped as "Other".
No views recorded yet.
Traffic sources
Referring site, by host.
No traffic recorded yet.
Views and downloads exclude known bots/crawlers. Citations combines this platform's own DOI-resolved index with each external source's own reported total — see Cited by above for individually listed citing works. Last refreshed 0 seconds ago.