The Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA) has reinforced its collaboration with the State Security Service (SSS) and the Nigeria Police Force to ensure strict enforcement of nuclear safety and radiation protection regulations.

The director-general of the NNRA, Yau Idris, in an interview with journalists, explained that the agency’s mandate covered entities operating in the oil and gas, health, education, excavation, and construction sectors, among others, where radioactive materials are utilised or researched.

He spoke on the sidelines of a workshop organised by Halimasalam Nigeria Ltd. for the authority’s staff in Abuja.

The workshop was titled “Strengthening Regulatory Competence, Inspector Effectiveness, and Service Delivery Reforms.”

“The DSS and the police are ready to assist us to make sure we perform our duties. We have just started, and now we are training,” he said.

According to him, non-compliance by government entities remains a persistent problem, prompting the NNRA to strengthen collaboration with security agencies and other stakeholders.

The DG announced that both the SSS and the police have pledged their support to ensure that the NNRA effectively carries out its statutory responsibilities.

He said that regulating public health institutions had proven more difficult than overseeing private facilities, which he described as more willing to comply with regulatory standards.

“Our major challenge is regulating government facilities, particularly the hospitals. We find it very difficult to regulate the health sector.

“We held a meeting last week with the Department of State Services (DSS), and we are also working closely with the police bomb squad and the Federal Ministry of Health to ensure strict enforcement.

“In fact, the Minister of Health gave us a mandate that any hospital that is not complying with us, we should close down that hospital,” he said.

Mr Idris, however, urged the authority’s staff to uphold transparency and fairness in their dealings with licensees and to carry out their duties promptly and professionally to safeguard public safety in the use of nuclear and radiological facilities across the country.

Also speaking, the chief executive officer of Halimasalam Nig. Ltd., Shakir Akorede, said there is a need to continuously probe the use of modern technologies and their impact on the environment and the populace.

“So it is very critical that we have regulatory agencies that see to the health of Nigerians. For instance, you are doing an exploration or whatever you are doing, and how these things affect humans is very important,” Mr Akorede said.

In his remarks, Tosin Abegunde, the chairman of the Petroleum Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, NARA branch, commended the authority for the workshop.

(NAN)