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From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Managing Director of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Barrister Oluwaseun Faleye, said the Fund was prioritising issues relating to platform workers, the gig economy and the growing impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the workplace as part of efforts to adapt to evolving labour realities.
Faleye made the disclosure while responding to questions following a presentation by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, at the General Assembly of the 114th Session of the International Labour Conference in Geneva, Switzerland.
The minister had called for inclusive and human-centred AI policies that protect jobs and workers’ rights while leveraging technology to drive economic growth and decent work.
Commending the minister’s presentation, Faleye described it as a robust response to some of the most pressing issues confronting the labour ecosystem.
“I think it’s a very robust response, particularly as it deals with emerging issues in the place of work generally. Some of the key issues that we’ve been dealing with within the labour ecosystem have been the treatment of platform workers, the gig economy, and, of course, the impact of AI on labour and workers generally,” he said.
According to him, the rapid adoption of AI and digital technologies requires governments and institutions to better understand their implications for workers and workplaces in order to develop appropriate policy responses.
“AI is here to stay, and the more governments and institutions like ours understand the implications of AI on workers, on the role of workers and the workplace, the more it is that we’re able to engage on relevant solutions to it,” he added.
Faleye noted that the changing nature of work had expanded beyond traditional workplace arrangements, creating new challenges for labour regulators and social protection institutions.
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“You know that traditionally, labour has been defined within the context of the formal workplace economy, but recent innovations now entail people working from home and people working on platforms like Uber and Bolt. There is a need to define appropriate ways to measure their role and impact and for us at NSITF to begin to understand how best to situate our mandate within those new work realities,” he said.
The NSITF boss also disclosed that the Fund was examining how best to engage workers who are generally classified as independent contractors rather than formal employees, particularly regarding workplace injury compensation and social insurance coverage.
“I think the core engagement is really dimensioning what is termed as a workplace within those platform workers’ ecosystem. It is also to fashion out how best to engage in terms of their contributions and how best to provide compensation for them in the event of workplace injury,” he stated.
He explained that one of the challenges facing the Fund was determining how workplace injuries should be defined for remote and platform-based workers whose work environments differ significantly from traditional office settings.
“For those who are working from home, at what point can we better understand when an injury occurs and whether that injury is in relation to work or something else? These are issues we need to discuss with relevant stakeholders,” he said.
Faleye described the International Labour Conference as an important platform for engaging stakeholders on emerging labour issues and identifying practical solutions for workers in the digital economy.
He also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for establishing the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, noting that Nigeria must keep pace with global technological advancements shaping workplaces and business activities.
According to him, the increasing adoption of AI across public institutions demonstrated the country’s commitment to embracing innovation while improving service delivery.
Platform workers are individuals who provide paid labour services through digital applications, including ride-hailing, delivery and online freelance platforms, and are increasingly becoming a significant segment of the modern workforce.
