New smoking laws for South Africa – a job-killer in plain packaging
The Portfolio Committee on Health has conducted more public hearings on the new Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill, with participants expressing mixed views. The new Bill has been met with both support and vehement opposition, depending on the clauses being focused on. Broadly, the bill aims to introduce the following: Indoor public places...
New smoking laws for South Africa – battle over jobs and lost profits
Proponents and supporters of the raft of new smoking law for South Africa have reflected on the public feedback on the bill so far, alleging that fear-mongering and misinformation have taken root to manipulate the public into rejecting the bill. The new Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill is currently with the provinces...
Has countdown to #Smokefree Nollywood begun?
The recent convergence of movie practitioners on the auspices of Nollywood in Abuja to discuss the dangers of smoking in movies, is indicative that the Nigerian movie industry is now grasping the reality of the threat smoking in films pose to children and the uninformed. While the National Tobacco Control Act of 2015 and...
Senators Now Want E-Cigarettes, Sheesha Outlawed In Kenya
Senators are now pushing for a ban on electronic cigarettes or strict regulations on the use of the substance. In a motion tabled by Nominated Senator Catherine Mumma, the senators raised concerns over abuse of nicotine and the increasing usage of e-cigarettes by underage users mostly students in primary and secondary schools. The Senate wants the...
The “Kwit” app to stop smoking is the first to be recognized by the WHO
The “Kwit” mobile application has just been validated by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one way among others to quit smoking. More than three million people have downloaded it around the world. The principle of “Kwit”? Stimulation and motivation based on game mechanics to avoid returning to cigarettes. Stop smoking before giving in...
‘It’s like smoking poison’: Sierra Leone’s youth battle addiction to a mystery drug
No one seems to know what’s in it or where it comes from. Yet the ‘kush devil’ is destroying young African lives. At a rehab centre in Freetown, staff and users are fighting back One thing is certain in Freetown, Sierra Leone’s capital, says 18-year-old Abdullah: you are never far from a kush dealer. Some...
Ministers set to ban single-use vapes in UK over child addiction fears
Government understood to have concluded the disposable nicotine products are mainly aimed at under-18s Ministers are reportedly poised to ban single-use vapes, after a series of calls from councils, leading paediatricians and public waste campaigners to make selling the disposable devices illegal on health and environmental grounds. The move could come next week after the government...
How China Became Addicted to its Tobacco Monopoly
For two decades, China Tobacco has undermined a landmark anti-smoking treaty. Millions more deaths are predicted as a result. Chongqing, a booming municipality of 32 million people, was set to join a short list of major Chinese cities that have banned indoor smoking in public. But in August 2020, Zhang Jianmin, head of the state-run monopoly...
