The Section provides a support function to the NIOH, and the main objectives are building capacity, promotion of occupational health and safety and the development of human resources in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Region, through international training and outreach programmes.

North-South collaborative links are well established and growing, as the NIOH has long standing associations with numerous international organisations and institutes including: the World Health Organization (WHO); the International Labour Organization (ILO); the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) in the UK; the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the USA; the University of Birmingham Institute of Occupational Medicine in the UK; the Swedish National Institute of Public Health (SNIPH); the Fogarty International Center and University of Michigan in the USA.

South-South collaborative links with Brazil have been forged recently and are being developed further, particularly for the benefit of the Portuguese-speaking countries in the SADC Region.

As a WHO Collaborating Centre (CC) in Occupational Health (OH), from 2005-2009, the NIOH continues to be an integral part of the current GPA-based WHO CC in OH Global Network Plan 2009-2012, and one of the NIOH staff members holds a management position within the current Global Network Plan. The NIOH is currently undergoing a re-designation process for a second four-year term as a WHO CC in OH. Please see further information under “Collaborations".

Examples of the outreach and capacity building programmes are the Fogarty International Center / University of Michigan Southern African Programme in Occupational and Environmental Health Training (with an academic focus), and the Sida (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency)-sponsored Work and Health in Southern Africa (WAHSA) Programme (driven by actions and interventions in the workplace). Please see further information under “Collaborations”.

The Section coordinates training programmes run by the NIOH; organises programmes for foreign visitors; provides an event management and marketing and communications function for the NIOH; and facilitates the continued professional development of the NIOH staff.