Occupational health and safety in small enterprises

Health and work are two central components of sustainable development. A total of 2.6 billion people constitute the global labour force, 80% of which is in the developing world. A significant part of the working population in both developed and developing countries is employed in so-called small-scale enterprises (SSEs). This is the under-served working population which does not fully benefit from available knowledge and experience related to health and safety at work. The focus of this paper includes common features of SSEs, with some key WHO documents and publications on chemical hazards, safety, and emergency measures, as well as the WHO concept on Occupational Health for All, and the WHO Global Strategy.