NIWA Prioritises Staff Welfare as Girei Launches Major Safety and Mental Health Initiative

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has intensified efforts to create a safer and healthier work environment for its employees, with Acting Managing Director, Umar Yusuf Girei, unveiling a broad welfare and psychosocial support initiative aimed at boosting staff wellbeing and productivity.

Speaking in Lokoja during activities marking the 2026 World Safety Day celebration, Girei said the Authority is placing staff safety and workplace wellness at the centre of its institutional reforms, stressing that a thriving workforce remains critical to achieving operational excellence in the waterways sector.

Delivering a paper titled “Good Psycho-Social Working Environment: A Pathway to Thriving Workers and Strong Organisation,” the NIWA boss disclosed that management has embarked on the construction of new office facilities and the rehabilitation of existing ones at the headquarters and selected area offices to improve working conditions for staff.

According to him, the Authority has also invested in healthcare and sanitation infrastructure, including the provision of a fully equipped staff clinic, access to potable water, and improved sanitation systems at the Lokoja headquarters and other operational locations.

Girei further revealed that NIWA, in collaboration with relevant agencies such as the Federal Medical Centre Lokoja, has continued to organise periodic mental health and wellness sessions for staff as part of efforts to promote emotional stability and workplace balance.

In a move designed to support inclusiveness and employee welfare, he noted that the Authority has implemented flexible work arrangements for nursing mothers in line with directives from the Office of the Head of Service.

The Acting Managing Director added that personnel across all cadres have also benefited from specialised trainings in emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, and workplace stress management conducted in countries including Turkey and Rwanda.

The event attracted representatives from several strategic organisations, including the Nigerian Navy, Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission, National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and the Kogi State Ministry of Transportation.

Industry observers say the renewed focus on occupational safety, mental wellbeing, and staff support reflects a growing shift within public institutions toward building healthier and more productive work cultures.