West Africa: Tactics to Undermine Tobacco Control in W/Africa Slammed

Source from:  The Daily Observer (Banjul) 10/09/2014

Advocates from the African Network for Information and Action against Drug (Raid-The Gambia) and colleagues of the Task Force of the Tobacco Industry Interference Monitoring Team in The Gambia have reacted to strategies deployed by tobacco firms through the Trade Liberaliation Scheme (TLSP) of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to undermine efforts to control tobacco use in the sub-region.

Speaking at a recent press briefing, the executive director of Raid-The Gambia, Sambujang Conteh, affirmed that it has come to their knowledge that some tobacco industries capitalise on the TLSP of the ECOWAS to import their tobacco products duty free to The Gambia. Some of these firms, he said, are not within the ECOWAS region, but want to seize this as an opportunity to distribute their products in The Gambia duty free.

The staunch tobacco advocate stressed that despite the gains and the numerous international treaties or protocols, they have the rights to come up with a strategy in order to cover the revenue losses in the form of excise tax, environmental tax, processing free, health levy among others.

He revealed: "According to statistics from the Central Bank of The Gambia on 31st January 2014, The Gambia's projected GDP for 2014 was GMD 33.7 billion and looking at the total revenue collected from tobacco in 2013, it was amounted to GMD 172,745,977.41. Looking at the other side, the total health expenditure budget in 2013 was GMD 571,086,101. He said the government needs more resources in terms of tax from tobacco industries.

Conteh appealed for strategies to be devised given that The Gambia as a tax based economy cannot afford to lose such a huge amount of money.

"Tobacco use is affecting the health of the nation and it has created a big burden on the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. Tobacco use today is the highest cause of death in the world and according to World Health Organisation reports, each stick of cigarette has 4000 different chemicals and 60 among which are poisonous. We are confident that the government of The Gambia will positively react to make plans to have more income from tobacco products in order to save the present and future generation from devastating health risk as a result of tobacco use," he concluded.

The deputy director of Health Promotion and Education at the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammed Lamin Saho, said tobacco is a great concern for the ministry and partners, calling for concerted efforts to discourage its use in the country.

The Non-communicable Diseases Programme manager at the Ministry of Health, Omar Badjie, said most of the NCDs are associated with tobacco use, which he said is killing people rapidly.

He informed that the government has put in place the necessary measures for people to stop smoking.