Uganda: Activists Ask Govt to Implement Anti-Tobacco Act

Source from:  The Monitor 12/22/2015

Activists have asked government to speed up the process of implementing the Anti-Tobacco Act, months after it was passed into an Act of Parliament.

The chairperson of the parliamentary forum on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), Ms Benny Namugwanya Bugembe, said once the law is implemented, there will be fewer people developing cancer and other NCDs which will reduce the Health ministry's budget and see the funds directed to other sectors.

Call for sensitisation

"This is a public health issue. Currently, the Ministry of Health is in the process of drafting regulations that could see the Act implemented. But in the mean-time, sensitisation of the public should be taken as important. If people know that smoking will affect them, they will not allow anyone to smoke near them," Ms Bugembe said during a meeting with stakeholders in Kampala on Friday.

In July, Parliament passed the Anti-Tobacco Bill that among others legislates for the controlled use of tobacco in public places. Despite attempts to reduce tobacco intake, however, Ms Bugembe says the tobacco industry is fighting back for survival.

"Tobacco is now branded as stylish. For instance, smoking shisha, which is scented, makes it enticing to the youth. In secondary schools, students hide kuber (a form of tobacco) in sugar such that when being checked before admission, one thinks the tin is full of sugar. There are even tobacco candies now," she added.

The concern

In Uganda, at least 37 people die as a result of tobacco-related illnesses every day according to World Health Organisation while the number of men and women smoking is on the rise. According to the 2013 Tobacco Control Journal, the percentage of smokers will increase to 30 per cent by 2030 in Africa if nothing is done. The World Bank says for every Shs2, 565 the government receives from the tobacco sales, it parts with Shs7, 695 treating those with tobacco-related illnesses. Enditem