Health and safety laws vary considerably from country to country, and there is a trend towards greater focus on safety in the workplace – particularly on construction sites.
A host country, when considering introducing infrastructure projects, should consider the appropriateness of current laws and determine whether greater stringency is required – recognizing that there will be a cost attached to the implementation of health and safety standards (as the contractor is likely to include the increased costs associated with following such standards into the costing of the infrastructure project).
Where a foreign investor is involved, it may itself require certain minimum standards of health and safety to be followed.
There are also likely to be issues around liability to the general public – for example if, during the course of construction, masonry falls on someone and injures or kills them. This liability may be civil liability or even have criminal consequences, with potential for prison sentences by those responsible. The laws of the host country may already provide for these issues.