Occupational Health and Safety Management in High-Rise Building Construction Sites in Abuja

Construction sites for high-rise buildings in Abuja's rapidly expanding urban core in the North Central geopolitical zone present significant occupational health and safety challenges that require systematic management to protect workers and comply with Nigerian and international standards. This study assesses occupational health and safety management systems on ten high-rise building construction sites in Abuja, evaluating compliance with the Factories Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems standard ISO 45001:2018. A structured observation checklist and interviews with site safety officers and workers were used to collect data on fall prevention systems, personal protective equipment usage, electrical safety, and emergency preparedness. Quantitative injury frequency rates were calculated from site accident records over a 24-month retrospective period. Results indicate that fall from height was the leading cause of fatal and serious injuries, accounting for sixty-two percent of recorded incidents, consistent with global construction safety data. Scaffold inspection records were absent or non-compliant on seven of the ten sites, and personal protective equipment compliance among general labourers averaged only forty-four percent. Only three sites had formally documented safety management plans, and none had achieved ISO 45001 certification. Injury frequency rates on sites without formal safety management plans were 3.4 times higher than on the three sites with documented plans. The study recommends mandatory ISO 45001 certification for contractors bidding on projects exceeding 1,000 m2 gross floor area in the FCT, and integration of safety audit scoring into the contractor pre-qualification process. Keywords: occupational health and safety, high-rise construction, Abuja, ISO 45001, fall prevention.