Public health experts and advocacy groups have called on the Federal Government and other African countries to save a potential 15.5 million lives, increase productivity and revenue in the next decade by adopting Sweden’s Tobacco Harm Reduction strategy for a smoke-free country.
Speaking at a Tobacco Reduction Roundtable organised in Lagos Thursday by ValueFronteira Limited, Dr. David Oke of the University of Lagos stated that smoking being attitude-sustained, cannot be stopped by an outright policy or a sudden ban on cigarette companies.
Rather, there should be more awareness for alternatives to tobacco, which he listed to include vaping (which has a combination of nicotine and flavour and is scientifically certified as non-injurious), as well as herbal cigarette and nicotine nasal spray, among others.
Also, government can combine that with risk-proportionate policies, including tax disincentive.
Also speaking, Mrs. Imoleayo Oyekanmi of the National Aid & STI Control Programme (NASCP) noted that while the alternatives have nicotine, which is medically safe and is present in the regular tobacco, they do not have the carcinogens in the regular tobacco.
She further advised against public smoking of tobacco, as the effect on non-smokers is equally very deadly. The alternatives being more expensive, however, they have called on the Federal Government to subsidise them in order to achieve the desired result.
Keynote speaker, Mr. Teslim Shitta-Bey, citing the World Health Organisation (WHO), said that tobacco use is responsible for over eight million deaths annually, with a projected 10 million by 2025.
According to Shitta-Bey, who is the managing director of Proshare, the dangers associated with tobacco smoking are not limited to death but equally has a staggering economic toll, “with substantial smoking-related healthcare and productivity losses and negative impacts on the environment.”
Citing 2015 research by the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), he disclosed that Nigerians spend an average of N89.5 billion yearly on tobacco, while a 2017 report by Nigeria Health Watch stated that 8,004 tonnes of butts and packs of cigarettes wind up as toxic trash each year, creating a severe ecological impact that is quite detrimental and damaging.
“In addition, smoking contributes to a rising tide of non-communicable diseases. Several countries are beginning to shift to alternative non-combustible risk reduction tobacco alternatives to reduce the associated health, economic and productivity risks associated.”
Advocating Sweden’s success method in achieving a smoke-free country and Tobacco Harm Reduction Policy, President of ValueFronteira Limited, Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Muonso, said the model is consistent with the objective of Article 1 of the WHO Framework Convention for Tobacco Control (FCTC), which focuses on “supply, demand and harm reduction strategies.”
He explained that Sweden’s success was a product of transformative power of evidence-based policies, adding that it was time for Nigeria to revolutionise its approach to combating the scourge of smoking-related diseases.
“At ValueFronteira Limited, we firmly believe that adopting Sweden’s blueprint for a smoke-free country and the associated Tobacco Harm Reduction policies is not just a choice; it is a responsibility we owe to our citizens and the future generations of this great country,” Ike-Muonso said.
Citing a 2091 research by Davis Adelia et al, titled “Current Prevalence Pattern of Tobacco Smoking in Nigeria: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis,” he said the smoking prevalence was around 10.4 per cent, with an estimated 4.7 million daily smokers.
“The economic losses incurred by tobacco smoking in Nigeria were estimated at $591 million in 2015 based on the estimates in a May 2018 blog post published on the website of the Center for the Study of the Economies of Africa, and ₦ 634 billion annually
(approximately $2.07 billion) in 2019.
“On the average, the economic burden attributable to tobacco use accounted for 0.28 per cent of total GDP between 2013 and 2020 in the country. Smoking-related deaths annually are around 16.1 thousand, according to the Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction (GSTHR).”
Against this background, he canvassed Sweden’s strategy on promoting safer alternatives to traditional cigarettes, such as smokeless tobacco products like snus and nicotine-based tobacco-free alternatives.
“Nigeria must double efforts in arresting this trend by learning best practice from Sweden’s success in this respect. Sweden has indeed become a beacon of hope in the global fight against tobacco, with its unique approach to tobacco control leading to a significant decrease in smoking rates and a consequent improvement in public health,” he said.
He noted that Sweden’s strategy, which combines traditional tobacco control methods with harm reduction strategies, and is taking the country’s smoking prevalence rate to below 5 per cent, “could potentially save 15.5 million lives in the next decade if adopted by other African countries.”
Sweden’s Tobacco Harm Reduction initiatives, anchored in reducing exposure to smoke and providing safer alternatives to combustible cigarettes, have not only driven down smoking rates but have also significantly alleviated the economic burden associated with smoking-related healthcare.
“The success of Sweden’s smoke-free policies demonstrates the potential for Nigeria to achieve similar results in reducing the harm caused by tobacco smoking. By adopting evidence-based guidelines and learning from the Swedish experience, Nigeria can work towards a healthier future for its citizens.”