Government, through the Ministry of Industries, Mines and Technological Development (MINMIDT), is examining ways through which industrial risks could be reduced to the barest minimum and emerging ones nib in the bud. A workshop to validate a draft strategy for the management of risky, insalubrious or inconvenient industries began in Yaounde yesterday December 23 presided at by the Inspector General in MINMIDT, Martin Yankwa.

Addressing participants from other government ministries, other related structures and the private sector, Martin Yankwe said it is not in any way implying that industries are classified dangerous. "It is that in the industries, there are activities that endanger the lives of people.

Our role in the Ministry of Industries, Mines and Technological Development is to carry out an exhaustive survey of the industries and ensure their security so that they can sustainably function," he said. The Inspector General disclosed that the ongoing concertation is to come up with revolutionary instruments that would replace the old and ill-adapted 1976 nomenclature that no longer meets the exigencies of the time.

Like the Inspector General, the Director of Industries in MINMIDT, Martin Mindjos noted that the importance of ensuring an efficient management of industrial risks prompted the ministry to train 350 inspectors of industries, who took oath last October and are already on the field. Thanks to the trained inspectors and in collaboration with the National Institute of Statistics, some 12,000 industries that could raise fears of risks had their information databases updated.

According to a private sector participant at the workshop, Tchoffo Jean-Baptiste, CEO Geobor Technology, "We are looking at ways through which we can manage industrial risks because the first regulatory instrument dates back 36 years ago and since then, there are new activities and substances that can provoke risks for industries and their personnel. Our goal is to seek ways of taking care of the environment and people working in industries," he said.