What the Policy provides
- Everyone and everywhere. The Policy covers all campuses, including laboratories, workshops, maritime training, offices and student housing. It applies to staff, students, third-party contractors and members of the public, and extends to fieldwork, internships, research, conferences, sporting events and official travel.
- Employer duties. The University keeps systems safe, appoints a Health and Safety Officer, provides protective equipment at no cost to employees, gives induction and specialist training, carries out periodic risk assessments, consults staff and students, and addresses psychosocial risks such as stress, bullying and violence.
- A named officer. The University’s Health and Safety Officer is the Head of Facilities Management, who is responsible for day-to-day safety practice, incident reporting and advice to staff and students.
- A Health and Safety Committee. Chaired by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Administration), with executive oversight from the Vice Chancellor. Members include the Health and Safety Officer, the heads of Facilities, Human Resources, Finance and Student Support, four elected employee representatives and, for student matters, a student representative. It meets quarterly, investigates incidents, reviews the Risk Register and briefs senior leadership each quarter.
- Everyone’s responsibility. Staff and students take reasonable care, follow procedures and signage, report hazards and near-misses immediately, use equipment as intended and take part in required training.
- Managing risk. An Institutional Risk Register covers laboratory and chemical safety, ergonomics, fire and structural safety, maritime and technical safety, fieldwork and travel, biological safety and environmental safety.
- Emergencies and first aid. First aid kits in every building, certified first aiders on each campus, a documented Emergency Action Plan with evacuation maps, regular drills and coordination with the emergency services.
- Learning from incidents. Departments keep incident and near-miss logs, serious incidents are reported to the national occupational health and safety authority within the prescribed timeframes, and the Committee carries out root-cause analyses and monitors corrective action.
- A right to refuse dangerous work. Employees may refuse tasks that pose an imminent and serious danger to health or life. Retaliation is prohibited, and concerns are assessed promptly with interim measures where needed.
Our practice before the 2026 policy
Maldives National University is a public university established by the Maldives National University Act (Law No. 3/2011). Health and safety at the University has been conducted in compliance with the laws and regulations that apply to the public sector, including the Employment Act (Act No. 2/2008) and its provisions on safe working conditions. Facilities Management, under its Head, has managed building, fire, electrical and emergency safety across the campuses. The 2026 Policy brings these arrangements together in one framework under the Occupational Health and Safety Act of 2024.
Legal framework
The Occupational Health and Safety Act (ratified in January 2024) and the Employment Act (Act No. 2/2008).
Related Pages and Policies
Sources
Policy owner: Human Resources. Approved by the University Council; in effect from 30 September 2026.
