NTCA Urges Enforcement Of Graphic Health Warnings On Tobacco Products

The National Tobacco Control Alliance (NTCA) has called for the full enforcement of graphic health warnings on all tobacco products.

The NTCA made the call yesterday at a media briefing themed: “Stop Tobacco Industry Interference: Enforce Graphic Health Warnings Now,” in Abuja.

Chairman of the alliance, Akinbode Oluwafemi, said though Nigeria has made significant strides in recognising the public health implications of tobacco-use and implementing measures to curb its prevalence, the effectiveness of the initiatives is hampered by some factors, including the tobacco industry’s influence and enforcement gaps.

He also revealed that despite the approval of a new set of graphic health warnings in June 2023, market surveys conducted by the NTCA in the FCT, Ebonyi, Akwa Ibom, Nasarawa, Kano, Adamawa and Oyo states exposed significant non-compliance.

He added that outdated warnings persisted on some cigarette packs, and compliance for other tobacco products such as shisha, cigars, snuff and cigarillos, were almost nonexistent, though the 150 days moratorium given by the National Tobacco Act ended on November 20, 2023.

“While some cigarette packs bear the new sets of warnings, some still carry the outdated pictorial warning, and worse still, a sizable number of packs bear the very old ‘text-only’ warnings.

“The industry employs various tactics, such as lobbying and strategic marketing, to influence decision-makers and dilute the impact of tobacco control measures. This interference not only undermines the effectiveness of existing policies but also hampers efforts to introduce more stringent regulations.

“To strengthen tobacco control in Nigeria, there is a crucial need to address these influences through transparent and accountable governance,” he stated.

On impact of the health warnings, the chairman revealed that a recent study by the Institute of Clinical Effectiveness and Health Policy in collaboration with an indigenous research group, the Centre for the Study of the Economies of Africa, has shown that a full implementation of the graphic health warnings policy will end 11,744 deaths caused by tobacco use; prevent 32,608 illnesses attributed to tobacco use and save the country N6,745,786 in healthcare costs annually.

“These projections reiterate the fact that graphic health warnings on tobacco packs are effective in reducing tobacco use and uptake, and that they indeed save lives,” he said.

Oluwafemi called on relevant bodies and agencies tasked with the enforcement of tobacco control laws to act without delay in enforcing the graphic health warnings policy on all tobacco products, to save the health of Nigerians.

The association’s director for Capacity Strengthening, Africa Tobacco Control Programme, Hilda Ochefu, lamented the inaction from the government, allowing the tobacco industry to have its way.

Ochefu expressed concern that allowing the industry to operate without enforcing tobacco laws would continue to reflect negatively on the country’s young population.