Issue pictorial warnings on cigarettes - VAD pleads
Accra, Feb 13, 2012
A civil society group, Vision for Alternative Development (VAD) is calling on the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) to issue pictorial warnings on cigarette packs.
According to the group, the passage of the tobacco control legislation will not in itself help fight against the health effects that smoking has on an individual if the directive from the Ministry of Health to issue pictorial warnings on the packs is not heeded by the FDB.
In July 2011, a draft of the tobacco control legislation for Ghana was presented before Parliament for consideration by the then Minister of Health, Joseph Yieleh Chireh, after seven years of intense lobbying and agitation. However, not much has been heard of the bill after it was last read on the floor of parliament.
Speaking in an interview on e.tv Ghana’s Awake, Executive Director of VAD, Issah Ali, noted that although text warnings on the harmful effects of smoking were boldly written on cigarette packs, they were not likely to achieve the purpose.
That, he said, was due to the high level of illiteracy among Ghanaians. He therefore, explained further that, the use of comprehensive graphics on the effects of smoking not only to the individual, but passive smokers as well, were more likely to achieve the desired goal.
According to him, effective health warnings especially those that include pictures have been proven to motivate users to quit and reduce the appeal of tobacco for those who are not yet addicted.
Issah Ali noted that, studies carried out after the implementation of pictorial package warnings in some countries such as Mauritius revealed remarkably consistent findings on the positive impact of using such warnings on tobacco packages.
He stated that the delays in the passage of the bill into law would in a long run affect the country’s desire to attain the Millennium Development Goals 1, 4 and 5.
He said there was also the need for government to change the tax system which will in effect increase the duties charged on the importation of tobacco and cigarettes as a way of discouraging people from buying the products.
Some revealing facts from the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicate that by 2030, 10 million people worldwide will die of tobacco related diseases. Out of the total number, it is estimated that 7 million will be from developing countries such as Ghana.
By: Jasmine Arku, e.tv Ghana
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