BANJUL, 17 APRIL 2018: In collaboration with the WHO Country Office and the Centre for Tobacco Control in Africa (CTCA), the Ministry Health and Social Welfare this afternoon launched the National Tobacco Control Committee to kick start the preparation for the implementation of the National Tobacco Control Act 2016.

“Partnership is crucial! You have my fullest backing and support. We must act fast to implement the national tobacco control act to reduce the burden of tobacco use in the Gambia”  These were the words of the Honourable Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Mrs. Saffie Lowe-Ceesay, at the inauguration of the 28-member National Tobacco Control Committee. The Committee, which is multi-sectoral in composition, comprises Government officials at the level of decision-making from the offices of the President and Vice President as well as other critical sectors of Government including Ministries of Trade, Justice, Interior, Information and Communication Infrastructure, Agriculture, Lands and Regional Government,  Environment, Youth and Sports, Basic and Secondary Education, Higher Education and Research, Finance and Tourism in addition to representatives of the civil society and media.

The Honourable Minister used the occasion to extend gratitude to the different arms of Government for demonstrating solidarity with the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to end the growing tobacco epidemic in the Gambia, which, she said, cannot be handled by a single agency or institution.  She also thanked the World Health Organization (WHO) for the persistent support and guidance rendered to the health sector particularly in the area of tobacco control, citing recent milestones such as the development of the Tobacco Control Act 2016 and the relevant regulations for its implementation.  She also thanked CTCA for supporting the inauguration by sponsoring the orientation workshop on their roles and responsibilities.

For his part, the WHO Representative, Dr. Desta A. Tiruneh, commended the Gambia for taking yet another giant step in controlling tobacco use in the country.  He said that the establishment of a national multi-sectoral tobacco control committee is a clear manifestation of the strong commitment the Government of the Gambia attaches to tobacco control. He informed the Committee that the fight against tobacco use is a challenging task, which kills nearly 7 million people globally each year.  He said that low and middle income countries continue to bear the brunt of the global tobacco burden, citing the African region where 8 to 43 % of boys and 5 to 30 % of girls use tobacco. 

The picture in the Gambia, according to Dr. Desta, is not very different from the rest of the developing world.  He said that in 2011, 32% of adult male ad 3% of adult female smoked whilst about 46% of male and 59% of female students aged 13 – 15 years were exposed to cigarette smoke at home and public places respectively, according to the global youth tobacco survey conducted in 2008. He said that in spite the challenges, WHO would continue to support the Gambia to consolidate the gains already made by providing the requisite technical support and guidance to the health sector but reminded them to be mindful of the interference of the tobacco industry with the noble job they are about to embark on.

 In conclusion, Dr. Desta called for concerted action to bring to an end the exposure of innocent victims to tobacco smoke at public places and also appealed to the new Committee to explore ways and means of ensuring that some of the revenue generated from tobacco taxation are used to support tobacco control efforts. Meanwhile, following the official inauguration, the WHO Country Office and the CTCA provided technical orientations (on the WHO FCTC, best practices on national tobacco control coordination mechanisms among others) to build capacity of the new Committee.