E-SHENA Portal
FAQs
Please refer to SHENA NTI: Enforcement of Compounding of Offences for Failure to Appointment of Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Officer, WSH Co-Ordinator and Breaches of First-Aid Requirements here.
Please refer to SHENA NTI: Commencement of Compound Fines for WSH Officer, WSH Co Ordinator and First Aid Requirements here.
Any person reasonably suspected of having committed such offence(s) may be compounded with a sum not exceeding one-half of the amount of the maximum fine that is prescribed for the offence or a sum of $5,000, whichever is the lower.
To register new application for WSH Officer, please visit here.
To replace the Certificate of Approval, please visit here
To cancel approved registration as a WSH Officer, please visit here
For suspension and cancellation of WSH Officer application, please visit here
You can:
- Enquire by email to wshofficer@shena.gov.bn
- Contact us at 2382000
Please note that processing times vary by application. Your application may also be delayed because of an error, such as missing documents or an incomplete application
Please refer to the definition of factory and criteria for a workplace that required to have a WSH Officer here
For further information, please refer to Workplace Safety and Health (Workplace Safety and Health Officers) Regulations, 2014 here
All approved WSH Officer who have been approved to act as WSH Officer prior to the issuance of 2021/NTI/03 will be registered under new application process.
Under the Radiation Protection Order, 2018, a "radioactive material" means any material containing a radioactive substance giving it a specific or total radioactivity greater than 70 becquerels per gram (70 Bq/g) (0.002 u(i/g) or 70 kBq/kg.
Under the Radiation Protection Order, 2018, a controlled apparatus is:
an apparatus that produces ionising radiation when energised or that would, if assembled or repaired, be capable of producing ionising radiation when energised;
an apparatus that produces ionising radiation because it contains radioactive material; and
an apparatus prescribed by regulations made under this Order that produces harmful non-ionising radiation when energised
The radiation activities that require to be licensed are as follows:
Import and export of radioactive material and/or controlled apparatus;
Use or deal (including storage and disposal) with radioactive material and/or controlled apparatus;
Manufacture of radioactive material and/or controlled apparatus;
Transport of radioactive material; and
Sale of radioactive material and/or controlled apparatus.
Please refer to the General Guideline for Radiation Licensing Application (2020).
Your company will need to be licensed with the Radiation Department, SHENA before you bring any radioactive material or controlled apparatus into Brunei Darussalam. Once licensed, you are required to submit an online permit application (www.bdnsw.gov.bn) to the Brunei Darussalam National Single Window (BDNSW) through the Royal Customs and Excise Department (RCED).
Currently there is no disposal facility for radioactive material in Brunei Darussalam. Therefore, your company is required to return the radioactive material to the country of origin / supplier after obtaining written approval from the Authority.
Please note that any disposal of any radioactive material, whether in working condition or otherwise must receive prior written approval of the Authority before disposal, pursuant to Section 6(3) of the Radiation Protection Order, 2018.
Currently there is no disposal facility for controlled apparatus in Brunei Darussalam. In the absence of such facility in Brunei Darussalam, the controlled apparatus is recommended to be returned to the supplier for proper disposal. Your company is advised to seek professional assistance in dismantling the apparatus and ensure the x-ray tube is properly disposed.
Please note that any disposal of any controlled apparatus, whether in working condition or otherwise must receive prior written approval of the Authority before disposal, pursuant to Section 6(3) of the Radiation Protection Order, 2018.
No. Fixed storage facilities that are in use are not allowed to be shared with other companies.
Yes, as stipulated under Section 6(1)(d) of the Radiation Protection Order, 2018.
No. Any information contained in a permit that has been approved or revoked cannot be amended. The company is advised to resubmit a new permit application through BDNSW.
Radiation Department, SHENA regulates apparatus or materials that emit ionising radiation. Telecommunication devices do not fall under this category.
Diesel generators do not emit ionising radiation.
Facilities that carry out operations involving ionising radiation should be licensed with SHENA. By virtue of being licensed, the operators are to carry out procedures that do not pose significant risk to the public and environment.
You are advised to seek medical assistance. If you are a radiation worker, you are also strongly advised to contact the Radiation Department, SHENA and bring along with you relevant supporting documents.
There is bound to be radiation exposure from cosmic radiation (natural radiation). However, the amount of radiation exposure is not known to cause significant harm to adult, children and unborn child.
Commercially available X-ray machines are designed to prevent public and worker from being exposed. Nevertheless, radiation worker is required to take extra precaution as part of the workers' safety requirement.
Public is exposed to naturally occurring radioactive material that is present in our environments such as certain fruits, the floors and walls of our homes and even the air we breathe.
The Radiation Protection Order, 2018 can be found in SHENA website www.shena.gov.bn and the Attorney General's Chambers website www.agc.gov.bn.
Every person who sells any radioactive material or controlled apparatus shall immediately give notice of sale to SHENA, together with the name, address and prescribed particulars of the person whom it was sold (Section 6 (2) and 7 (2) of the Radiation Protection Order, 2018). Any person selling radioactive material or controlled apparatus should obtain the appropriate licence for this purpose.
Every person who purchases any radioactive material or controlled apparatus shall immediately give notice of purchase to SHENA, together with the name, address and prescribed particulars of the person whom it was purchased (Section 6(3) and 7 (3) of the Radiation Protection Order, 2018). Any person purchasing radioactive material or controlled apparatus should obtain the appropriate licence for this purpose.
Any person who contravenes these sections is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction in the case of an individual, to a fine not exceeding $100,000 imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both; and in the case of a body corporate, to a fine not exceeding $10,000,000 (Section 6 (5) and 7(5) of the Radiation Protection Order, 2018).
Yes, it is good industry practice to develop and implement a fit for purpose and relevant safety management system for the factory or organisation and review it for its effectiveness.
The emergency preparedness shall include the emergency response plan which shall be established and reviewed or tested regularly to ensure its effectiveness and suitability. The emergency plan shall include the following:
formation of emergency team and their duties and responsibilities;
appointment of emergency coordinator;
procedure for notification and raising of alarms. The list of names and contact numbers of company personnel, relevant authorities and emergency services shall be maintained;
initial response procedures and site layout plans for various emergency situations;
effective evacuation plans;
communication with relevant authorities such as police, fire and rescue department; and
procedures and means of controlling and containing loss such as provision of first aid.
Currently, the WSH (General Provisions) Regulations, 2014 is limited in scope as it applies certain categories.
However, in respect of a worksite, under the Workplace Safety and Health (Construction) Regulations, 2014, regulation 4(1) states that it shall be the duty of the occupier of a worksite to implement and maintain at all times a safety and health management system.
Where the contract sum of building operation or works of engineering construction to be carried out in a worksite is $30 million or more, the occupier is to appoint a workplace safety and health auditor to audit the safety and health management system of the worksite at least once every 6 months.
Where the contract sum of building operation or works of engineering construction to be carried out in a worksite is less than $30 million or more, the occupier is to conduct a review of the safety and health management system of the worksite at least once every 6 months.
In general, the construction of all building structures must be approved by the Authority for Building Control Industry (ABCi) under the Building Control Order, 2014.
Any activity which involves the laying, structural alteration, inspection, maintenance, repair, demolition or removal of communications cable would be deemed to be Works of Engineering Construction under section 4 and the Fourth Schedule to the Workplace Safety and Health Order, 2009.
There have been no reported major crane related incidents since January 2020 to date.
A Safety Officer may be considered as a secondary supervisor onsite providing further supervisory oversight to ensure safety measures and controls always remain in place and are adhered to. As such, any person who acts as a rigging supervisor, shall be trained and competent. He/she shall have to undergo relevant training such as person in charge (PIC) training from an approved training provider.
Please be informed that there are training courses related to Rigging Supervisors and Engineers to act as PIC provided by various approved training providers in Brunei Darussalam. You are advised to contact approved training providers to enquire on this. The List of SHENA approved training providers can be found on the SHENA Website.
The role of the Lifting Planner, is to ensure all hazards and risks with the activity are assessed, proper arrangements are in place to conduct the activity and mitigations are known.
The Lifting Planner is thus required to write the lift plans including initiating site surveys to ascertain ground conditions and complexity of the operations. He/she should have adequate practical and theoretical knowledge and experience of lift plan operations.
The Safety, Health and Environment National Authority (SHENA) is committed to making a difference and ensuring Brunei is a safe place to work and live. One of SHENA's roles is to conduct planned and unplanned inspections at any workplace, to ensure compliance with the Workplace Safety Health Order (WSHO) 2009 and its regulations in that no person shall be exposed to any risk at the workplace. In the event, that an Employer or Occupier is found in breach of the legislation, SHENA can issue enforcement notices such as Stop Work Orders or Remedial Orders if SHENA Inspectors are of the opinion that the ongoing activities or activities about to be undertaken could present imminent risk of serious injury to persons at the workplace. The list of enforcement notices issued can be found on the SHENA website.
Depending on the worksite, any workplace safety and health officer or the workplace co-ordinator appointed has the power to recommend such reasonably practical measures to the occupier to eliminate any forseeable risk to any person who is at work in that workplace or may be affected by the occupier's undertaking in the workplace. This means that if he/she feels that such cranes have no adequate safety and there is a foreseeable risk to persons, he/she can recommend to eliminate the use of such cranes.
If a member of the public believes working conditions at any workplace within Brunei Darussalam are unsafe, he/she should report it to SHENA via info@shena.gov.bn, such information will be treated in strict confidence. Upon receiving the complaint, SHENA will usually conduct a follow-up inspection to the concerned workplace to determine whether any unsafe acts are being practised.
Excavators are primarily designed as earthmoving machinery and are generally not designed to be used as lifting equipment. However, if the excavator's manufacturer provides allowances for the equipment to be utilised for lifting purposes, the instructions or conditions provided therein should be adhered to at all times. Hence, the use of excavators as lifting devices can only be used if manufacturer instructions allow for it to be used as such.
Currently SHENA does not publish incident statistics, however, summary details of past fatalities since 2019, are available on the SHENA website. In 2019, there were three fatalities related to lifting activities.
Crane management is one of HSE focus area within industry in Brunei Darussalam due to the number of fatalities and injuries that happened the last 8 years.
The key findings of these incidents were lack of adequate and competent supervision, inappropriate use of equipment; use of crane without certificate of examination; poor or no maintenance of crane; poor planning and crane operators operating without competency certificates.
SHENA has not yet published specific technical guidance on offshore lifting operations. However, SHENA has developed an Industrial Guidance Note on Lifting Operations (IGN/2019/01) which can be found here
The Presentation and all other presentations delivered during SHENA Safety Month can be found here
SHENA has not recorded any cases of chemical incidents so far.
SHENA is developing an Industry Guidance Note on the requirements to ensure suitable safety measures, signage, labelling and controls are in place with the storing, handling and use of chemicals. This includes the use of the Global Harmonised System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals. Under the Workplace Safety and Health (General Provisions) Regulations, 2014, the occupier, principal and employer of a workplace (which includes shop premises) is under a duty to obtain the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for the chemicals and ensure persons are aware of the safety measures in relation to the chemicals.
It is recommended that all persons involved in the manufacturer and supply of chemicals and those involved in the mixing of chemicals, shall classify and adequately label their products, develop and prepare a relevant SDS and ensure that information on such products are shared to all customers or users dealing with these chemicals.
Personal Protective Equipment when using chemicals would be dependent on the type of chemical, how hazardous they are and concerns involved. This detail would be available within the Safety Data Sheet (SDS). At the minimum, persons handling chemicals should be provided with safety goggles, half face mask respirator with suitable filter, chemical resistant gloves, suitable coveralls (chemical suits would be applicable in some cases), safety boots. Persons should be trained in handling chemicals and the PPE provided.
Any controls or restrictions for importation of chemicals should be referred to the Ministry of Health or the Royal Customs and Excise Department. SHENA is only mandated under the Workplace Safety and Health (General Provisions) Regulations, 2014 to look at the safety aspect of the chemicals (Hazardous Substances is defined in Part II of the Fifth Schedule to the Workplace Safety and Health Order, 2009), that is, its management in all workplaces. Import controls do not fall under SHENA's purview.
SHENA wishes to work and collaborate with all its stakeholders in the implementation of suitable measures that ensure compliance with relevant laws and practices for the country. In particular, SHENA aims to seek the support of industrial stakeholders in the implementation of the Global Harmonised System for Classification and Labelling, as well as Chemical Inventory assessment and mitigation measures. Proactive support from the industrial community in the implementation of good chemical management practices would be a relevant expectation.
The implementation of chemical management and enforcement in Brunei Darussalam involves not only SHENA but other stakeholders from Government as well. SHENA's role is to look at the safety aspect of the chemicals in a workplace and how it is managed. In answer to your question, SHENA's involvement in looking at chemical storage procedures, designs and security would be limited to the HSE aspect.
You are reminded to comply with the law when working at heights. Under the Workplace Safety and Health Order (General Provisions) Regulations, 2014, any person who has to work at a place from which he would be liable to fall a distance of more than 2 metres shall be provided with a secure foothold and handhold at the place so far as is reasonably practicable for ensuring his safety.
Under the Workplace Safety and Health (Construction) Regulations, 2014, regulation 22 (2) states that every open side or opening into or through which a person is liable to fall more than 2 metres shall be covered or guarded by effective guard-rails, barriers or other equally effective means to prevent fall.
The distance of more than 2 metres stated under the law is NOT inclusive of the person's height.
Yes, Internal or Inhouse Training is sufficient if it is conducted by a trainer who is certified to provide such course or training. Internal or inhouse training by uncertified individuals is therefore not sufficient.
Please be informed that Scaffolding Training is different from Work at Height Training. A Scaffolder is not required to attend Work at Height Training but MUST complete Scaffolding training. If he wishes to attend Work at Height Training, this is only in addition to the mandatory Scaffolding training that he must undertake.
Immediate safety infringements of concern can be reported to SHENA's Duty Officer at +673 7332200
No, this is not advisable as it may hinder the effectiveness of the safety helmet. Manufacturer's advice and safety standards would apply.
Please refer to SHENA IGN/2020/02 - Guidance to Work at Height available here which contains guidance on emergency response procedures including rescue methods.
SHENA has already undertaken monitoring visits and inspections on workplaces including construction sites.to enforce the provisions of the Workplace Safety and Health Order, 2009 and its regulations. If you observe an unsafe work practice, you are advised to contact SHENA concerning the matter whereby SHENA can further investigate the matter. Safety infringements of concern can be reported to SHENA's Duty Officer at +673 7332200
Yes, the combination of H-frame and G.I. pipes scaffolds system IS permissible, however they should be inspected for design suitability by a competent person. You are advised to refer to IGN/2020/01 - Guidelines for the Safe Use of Scaffolding here for further information on this matter.
There have been no reported major crane related incidents since January 2020 to date.
Currently, there is no specific requirement under the law for companies to submit HSE performance report. However, under the WSH (Incident Reporting) Regulations, 2014, Employers or Occupiers of workplaces are required to report work-related fatalities, serious injuries, occupational illness, dangerous occurrence, and major accidents to SHENA. The regulations further states that the Employers and Occupiers shall keep records of such incidents and provide the extracts of the records as/when required by the Authority (SHENA).
The HSE performance data required by SHENA is not the same information as requested by PA. Furthermore, PA requires submission of performance data from the main oil & gas operators, which include combined figures and statistics for each operator and its contractors, whereas SHENA requires the individual statistical data from each company/contractor.
For individual companies, benefits of actively compiling and publishing their own HSE performance data under the platform include:
Building a good reputation as a company that is responsible, caring and trustworthy.
Elevating the company profile as one that is committed to monitoring and improving their HSE performance which adds value and competitive advantage for business opportunities and attractive employment prospects.
Ensuring continuous improvement in its HSE performance by utilising the available data for reviews and studies to prevent further and more severe injuries with an economic profit by avoiding loss of hours from injuries.
Actively contribute to national data collection of HSE performance and potentially influence future policy-making and initiatives towards HSE improvement.
The data is to be updated on a monthly basis and submission or data input is to be done by the middle (15th) of the following month. The data input into the system should take less than 10 minutes given the information is readily compiled beforehand.
The system has gone online since late last year. Companies are expected to start reporting now and retrospectively backtrack the data input from January 2022.
SHENA will not verify the reported data as it is submitted into the system. The companies themselves should ensure the accuracy and validity of the information. However, some verifications may be carried out during regulatory enforcement activities conducted by SHENA, or after conducting an analysis of the collective data, e.g. on an annual basis. In these cases, if there is discrepancy in the data, SHENA may request the company to provide further information or supporting documents.
The current system allows data that has been previously reported to be changed at any time by the authorised user(s). However, if companies do make amendments to figures from previous months, please alert SHENA via info@shena.gov.bn for our records.
The Business Reporting (BR) Portal allows companies to access and update company's data at any time and currently the Ministry of Finance and Economy has no plans to lock the data field of previous year(s); this is to allow room for companies that is new to the BR portal to report data for previous year(s).
Data that has been submitted by companies will be save periodically by BR Admin for reference and data will be over-ridded by the latest data reported by companies. Hence, there should be no issues with data integrity of the system as the data is saved on a weekly basis.
The individual company's data stored in the system is secured from any tampering as it is only accessible to the authorised company representatives for data entry and viewing. Only nominated individuals from the Authority are granted access to view this information. However, the Authority may share some extracts of the data to other agencies for regulatory purposes as deemed relevant.
SHENA does not intend to request for any consent from respective companies to share their HSE information to other agencies. We are not disclosing any sensitive information like personal information, companies' proprietary data, etc. The information here consists of numbers representing companies' performance measures, which should be made available and widely published/displayed by the companies to demonstrate their commitments on HSE.
Apart from SHENA, the HSE performance data may be shared with other relevant authorities and government agencies for a number of reasons, such as but not limited to:
Selection of bid list during tendering process.
Cross-referencing of information among agencies.
Potential recognition and/or awards in future.
For SHENA, the collective information will be reviewed and analysed to identify areas of concerns and potential gaps in legislation/ guidance which may lead to specific focused initiatives being introduced. The data could also influence updates to the National HSE Themes and strategic actions to be carried out in order to realise the national aspiration towards Wawasan 2035.
As mentioned above, currently there is no specific legal clause which mandates companies to submit HSE performance reporting to SHENA under the Business Reporting Portal hence no legal action will be taken. However, companies are strongly encouraged to actively participate in the initiative in working together towards improving HSE standards not only within the company but also nationally through provision of accurate HSE performance data and analyses ensuring focused and strategic policy-making and national initiatives.
Exposure hours are not necessarily be related to radiation equipment or any other equipment, but time spent doing work which is generally divided into two parts - employees working in the office; and those working in field (frontline).
The man hours should be logged accordingly i.e. the time at office should be logged under office hours and time in the field as frontline hours. However, if a regular office staff goes out to the field for occasional short visits or inspections, then in principle all his/her work (exposure) hours should still be categorised as office hours.
Frontline staff are those who are primarily working in the field on a regular or shift-work pattern and executing operational work/duties, as opposed to those who are officed based in the support functions of the organisation.
Companies are responsible for the safety and well-being of attachment students as per the duties under the Workplace Safety and Health Order, 2009 and should be included in the reported data under the system.
Working from Home within the set working hours should be included within the exposure hours.
If the company is dormant in terms of operations, i.e. without on-going activities, but maintains minimal administrative work in the office, then the HSE performance reporting would still be relevant, where an incident may still occur that should be recorded and reported to the system. If a company is totally dormant, i.e. inactive, then obviously there would be zero data to report.
For this reporting system SHENA requires the data of the individual company to be reported, without the inclusion of the performance of their sub-contractors. The sub-contractors should be carrying out their own reporting. This is to allow for a more accurate representation of HSE performance of all companies across all industry sectors, rather than having those contractors and sub-contractors 'hidden' behind their clients or main contractors. The main companies (clients or main contractors), however, may maintain their own reporting system including the (sub)contractors and SHENA will not interfere with any of those arrangements
No, this should not be included in the data to be reported to the HSE performance reporting system since the incident occurs outside of work hours and not covered under the reported exposure hours.
Near-misses are not considered a reportable incident under the Workplace Safety and Health (Incident Reporting) Regulations, 2014. However, if a specific near-miss is dealt with via an intervention process, then it is recordable under their intervention system, hence may be included in the HSE performance reporting.
Currently, there are no plans from SHENA to send out monthly reminders to companies for filling in of data. Companies are expected to conduct their due diligence and ensure data is updated by the 15th of each consecutive month.
Occupational disease should be confirmed and declared by a professional or registered medical practitioner i.e. a person registered under the Medical Practitioners and Dentists Act (Chapter 12).
SHENA acknowledges that different organisations have different classifications under the intervention system, and it is up to them how they manage those and what they do with the data for their own study and analysis. However, the HSE performance reporting system only requires the actual number of interventions made, as an indication of the active implementation of the system.
SHENA will not interfere in the internal arrangements of the company in relation to the designated person to update data into the Business Reporting (BR) Portal including the HSE performance monitoring system. The HSE personnel may share relevant data to the designated person for monthly updating of HSE performance. However, the company is expected to carry out their internal verification and validation process to ensure that the data submitted into the system is valid and accurate.
Currently, Business Reporting (BR) Portal has two types of user authorization access:
HR Access - has access to all Business Reporting sections (from 1 to 7).
Admin Access - has access to Business Reporting sections except for Section 4 - Employment as it contains confidential employee data.
Currently, Business Reporting (BR) Portal requires owner, director and authorized personnel to log using individual e-Darussalam account to access the company account in BR Portal. This will enable BR Admin to keep track of people updating the company account in BR portal through their individual IC number.
How about companies who are not registered under Ministry of Finance and Economy or not under Business Reporting Portal?The Ministry of Finance and Economy strongly encourages any individual or unregistered entity to register under Registry of Companies and Business Names (ROCBN). By law, all business entities must be registered under Registry of Companies and Business Names (ROCBN). ROCBN data will automatically be linked to BR portal and therefore the company account automatically be created under the Business Reporting (BR) Portal. If your registered business cannot be found or accessed under the BR Portal then there might be a technical issue, please email the BR Admin through br@mofe.gov.bn
SHENA may extract and analyse the data and share this with other agencies for beneficial purposes. SHENA may also generate statistics and reports related to the national HSE performance across the different industries for general publication without divulging company name and details. This will be useful for companies to benchmark their current performance against the other companies within their industry.
SHENA is currently considering the feasibility of such national recognition and award mechanism in collaboration with other relevant agencies to incentivize continuous improvement in HSE performance among industries.
Depending on the severity of the issue, SHENA can either give verbal warning and recommendations for improvement of any minor issues; or for more serious matters, legal notices such as Remedial Order (RO) or Stop Work Order (SWO) may be issued. The RO and SWO has specific schedule of items to be addressed and improved by the company, once the companies carry out the corrective actions, SHENA will verify the actions undertaken and if those sufficiently meet the standards and legal requirements then the RO/ SWO may be lifted. SHENA does not intend to delay any project, but to help the companies improve their compliance and HSE performance.
Under the Workplace Safety and Health Order, 2009 (WSHO, 2009) specific duties are outlined for the Principal, Occupier, Employer and Employee hence everybody involved in the project is responsible for safety, including sub-contractors. Regulatory action following an incident or breach of WSHO, 2009 will be subject to all responsible parties relevant to the project i.e. from sub-contractor all the way up to main contractor and Principal.
This is not a matter of blame. The company as the employer and/or occupier has a legal obligation to ensure compliance to WSHO, 2009 and provide a workplace that is safe for all its employees and other persons affected by its activities. If SHENA conducts an investigation the guilty party will be determined by what failure or breach of law and regulation is committed by whom, leading to appropriate legal action(s). It should be reiterated that Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is the last line of defense and the least effective control that will not stop the incident from happening. At the end of the day, the company is still responsible for the employee's safety.
Typical findings based on regulatory enforcement activities include unsafe working at height practices, unsafe scaffolding conditions and use, lack of PPE and lack of safety documentation.
In principle such incidents would be classified as non-work related. However, the Occupier/ Employer is responsible for conducting thorough investigations to determine the root causes and contributing factors to the incidents. Incidences such as these may be treated on a case-by-case basis and it is recommended for the Occupier / Employer to notify the incidents to the Department of Labour as they have specific provisions for work hours and welfare of workers.