March 19, 2014, Kampala– Health Ministry Representatives from six countries ; Botswana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda are meeting in Kampala for a regional workshop to improve warnings on cigarette packs and anti-tobacco public education campaigns. The Centre for Tobacco Control in Africa (CTCA) and World Lung Foundation (WLF) are hosting the four-day event that also includes representatives from Civil Society Organizations.
Officiating at the opening, the Dean of Makerere University School of Public Health ( (MakSPH), also Centre Director, Assoc. Prof. William Bazeyo revealed that a study carried out by MakSPH indicates that tobacco use is increasingly having devastating effects on Ugandans, a trend that needs to be reversed through effective media campaigns. He said one of the study findings by the School is that 73% of the cancers in Mulago Hospital are due to tobacco. He commended the World Foundation ( WLF) for partnering with CTCA adding that the Centre is committed to supporting tobacco control initiatives in Africa.
The representative from the Ministry of Health Dr. Sheila Ndyanabangi said the training has come at a time when Uganda is at a stage of enacting a comprehensive tobacco control legislation, adding that the skills acquired will go a long in enriching the advocacy and sensitization towards supporting the bill. She stressed the need to create awareness about the dangers associated with the use of the new forms of tobacco like Shisha and Kuber, which she said is on the rise among the use, and yet cause devastating effects to the unsuspecting users.
Ms. Sandra Mullin, Senior Vice President, Policy and Communications, ( WLF) said the event comes at a time when economic success in many African countries is making them a target for tobacco companies. She noted that the training is aimed at helping participants develop practical skills and tools to ensure their citizens understand how dangerous tobacco really is. She expressed confidence that the lives of many Africans will be positively impacted by the outcome of the workshop.
The Manager of the Centre for Tobacco Control in Africa ( CTCA) , Dr. Possy Mugyenyi urged countries to implement Graphic Health Warnings ( GHWs) adding that there is strong evidence that the graphic messages, combined with mass media campaigns can prompt smokers to quit . She assured the participating countries that CTCA has now has developed expertise and is able to provide technical assistance to help countries fulfil their obligations to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control ( FCTC). He hailed WLF for the partnership, adding that the two had earlier worked together to test mass media messages in Kenya.
The participants will share practical strategies for developing and running powerful, cost-effective, anti-tobacco media campaigns as well as implementing effective pictorial health warnings on tobacco packaging. By the end of the workshop, participants will have developed a country-specific plan that can be implemented within the next 12 months.
Every country represented at the workshop is a party to WHO’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), but each needs to improve their implementation of tobacco control measures in order to achieve best practices, according to the WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic 2013. According to The Tobacco Atlas, the tobacco prevalence rates in each of these countries is on the increase;
In Botswana, adult daily smoking prevalence is 17 percent; in Kenya it is 10 percent, in Nigeria it is 4 percent, in South Africa it is 14 per cent and in Uganda it is at 7 percent.