Fight against tobacco in schools continues

A press conference on the effects of the activities of the tobacco industry in schools took place in Yaounde yesterday June 14, 2016.

The tobacco industry is working against all odds to infiltrate the school milieu in Cameroon. This is the result of a study on the activities of the tobacco industry in schools presented during a press conference at the headquarters of the Cameroon Coalition Against Tobacco (C3T) in Yaounde on June 14, 2016.

The study was carried out by the C3T in collaboration with the Alliance for the Control of Tobacco in Africa (ACTA).

The study carried out in 20 schools in the seven council areas of Yaounde revealed that there were about 160 sales points of tobacco products just about 100m from school campuses making an average of eight sales points per school. It was also discovered that 95 per cent of the schools had tobacco sales points around their schools.

Also, 95 per cent of these schools openly sell tobacco products. Apart from that, the 50 per cent of the publicity gadgets and billboards are at the disposal of the children so that they easily see and read the adverts.

The study was aimed at finding out the sales, publicity and promotion activities of tobacco industries in the schools in order to reduce the interference of the business in the health policy and to protect the youths.

The Cameroon Coalition Against Tobacco (C3T) therefore recommends a ban on all forms of publicity, promotions as well as sponsoring from tobacco industries, band on the exhibition of tobacco products in sale points in the country, band on the sale of cigarettes in sticks and small packages and the instauration of signboards which carry the message “Forbidden to sell” to minors in all sales points.