The health minister Professor Issac Adewole says that Nigerians consumes 20 billion cigarettes annually. Tobacco harms the health, the treasury, and the spirit of Nigeria.
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Every year more than 17500 of it’s people are killed by tobacco-caused disease, while more than 370000 children and more than 4303000 adults continue to use tobacco each day. Complacency in the face of the tobacco epidemic will ensure the tobacco industry continues to run roughshod over the lives of Nigeria’s citizens and ensure that tobacco’s death toll will grow with each passing year. Tobacco control advocates must reach out to other communities to strengthen their efforts in this mortal fight.
Even though fewer men die on average in Nigeria than other middle-income countries, still 207 men are being killed by tobacco every week, necessitating action from policymakers. Even though fewer women die on average in Nigeria than other middle-income countries, still 130 women are being killed by tobacco every week, necessitating action from policymakers.
Buying tobacco robs families of the resources they need to rise out of poverty. A smoker in Nigeria would have to spend 7.8% the of national median income to purchase 10 of the cheapest cigarettes to smoke each day! Cigarette butts are the most commonly discarded piece of waste worldwide. It is estimated that 1.69 billion pounds of butts wind up as toxic trash, which is roughly equivalent to the weight of 177,895 endangered African elephants.
To find more customers, the tobacco industry markets its products aggressively to women and children. People living with mental illness are nearly twice as likely to smoke as other persons.
The combined revenue of the world’s 6 largest tobacco companies in 2013 was USD342 Billion, equal to 73% of the Gross National Income of Nigeria. The industry is a powerful force that does not fear the actions of smaller nation-states because their resources are often much larger. Larger economies have the opportunity to help the smaller allies face down this threat.
Even though fewer men smoke on average in Nigeria than on average in middle-income countries, still 3642900 men still smoke cigarettes each day, the sign of an ongoing and dire public health threat. Even though fewer women smoke on average in Nigeria than on average in middle-income countries, still 660800 women still smoke cigarettes each day, the sign of an ongoing and dire public health threat.
Even though fewer boys smoke on average in Nigeria than on average in middle-income countries, still 303300 boys still smoke cigarettes each day, the sign of an ongoing and dire public health threat. Even though fewer girls smoke on average in Nigeria than on average in middle-income countries, still 67000 girls still smoke cigarettes each day, the sign of an ongoing and dire public health threat. Even though fewer people use smokless tobacco on average in Nigeria than on average in middle-income countries, still 1789300 people currently use smokeless tobacco, the sign of an ongoing and dire public health threat.
“Nigeria is planning a new tobacco bill that is believed to have stiffer anti-tobacco laws”. South Easterners in Nigeria are the highest consumers of tobacco, with about nine per cent of its adult population currently smoking, a Global Adult Tobacco Survey, GATS, released in Nigeria indicates. Closely following the South East is the North Central – Middle Belt – where at least 8.5 per cent of its adult population is hooked on tobacco. North West states, including Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto and Katsina, are the least smokers in Nigeria, with only three per cent of its adult population indulging in tobacco. The North East, South-South and Southwest regions come between that range. The survey, conducted in 2012, is Nigeria’s first official data documenting the prevalence and pattern of adult tobacco use in the country.
The survey polled 9,765 respondents across the 36 states of Nigeria – and the capital territory. The report establishes standard for discussions around tobacco issues in Nigeria.
Until the GATS report, both the government and the civil society in Nigeria have relied on external estimates for policy and advocacy on tobacco. “It shows how bad the tobacco pandemic is in Nigeria,” Bode Olufemi of Environmental Rights Actions, ERA, who contributed to the survey, said. The report estimates that the bulk of Nigeria’s 4.5 million adult smokers are male. While 10 per cent of adult men in Nigeria consume tobacco, only 1.1 per cent of the women do.
The 4.5 million smoking adults exposes 27 million others to harmful second smoke, the report adds, with government buildings and restaurants the most likely places none-smokers get exposure to tobacco. The survey also estimates that an average smoker in Nigeria spends N1, 202.5 on tobacco products monthly. On the whole, Nigerians spend an average of N7.45 billion on tobacco monthly, and N89.5 billion yearly.
While at least one in every five adults polled saw a cigarette advert outside stores and sporting events, two in five adults admitted noticing an anti-tobacco warning on TV and radios. Four out of every five adult polled believe tobacco causes serious illness, the report said.
The survey was conducted between May and September, in the peak of insecurity in Northern Nigeria, limiting the number of respondents in the region. But Yemi Kale, Nigeria’s Statistician General, said the insecurity was only a minor challenge. “It didn’t affect the quality of the survey,” Mr. Kale said. Nigeria, with its over 160 million population and weak tobacco legislation, combines its growing middle class population and corruption index to form a viable market for tobacco industries. Nigeria is British American Tobacco’s most lucrative market in Africa. The company controls 84 per cent of local cigarette market.
In 2010, while markets in Turkey, Iran and South Africa declined, British American Tobacco – controlling 84 per cent of local cigarette market – declared a profit growth of £134 million to £858 million in its African and Middle East regions, driven largely by its Nigerian market.
Nigeria operated a 23-year-old tobacco control decree. The failed National Tobacco Control Bill 2009 is an upgrade of the Tobacco Control Act of 1990 and a replica of the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Nigeria ratified the FCTC treaty in October 2005. Anti-tobacco advocates argue that Nigeria needs to fully adopt the more comprehensive provision of FCTC. Nigeria is planning a new tobacco bill that is believed to have stiffer anti-tobacco laws.
Today, tobacco epidemic is one of the biggest public health threats all over the world.
According to the World Heart Federation, WHF, smoking is estimated to cause 10 per cent of cardiovascular disease, CVD, and is the second leading cause of CVD, after high blood pressure.
Sadly, the impact of tobacco smoke is not confined solely to smokers. Every year, nearly six million people die from tobacco use or exposure to second-hand smoke, accounting for six percent of female and 12 per cent of male deaths worldwide. By 2030, tobacco-related deaths are projected to increase to more than eight million deaths a year. Tobacco smoke contains a deadly mix of more than 7,000 chemicals. Hundreds are toxic. About 70 are known to cause cancer.
According to medical experts, none of these chemicals in tobacco has an overall health benefit. Statistics by the World Health Organization (WHO) show that tobacco caused 100 million deaths in the 20th century. Estimates say it may cause one billion deaths in the 21st century. Despite the fact that life expectancy for a smoker is at least 10 years shorter than for a non-smoker, many lives of non-smokers are put at risk due to second-hand smoke.
According to the World Heart Federation, WHF, tobacco acts in a number of ways to cause CVD. Its use, whether by smoking or chewing, damages blood vessels, temporarily raises blood pressure and lowers exercise tolerance. Tobacco also decreases the amount of oxygen that the blood can carry and increases the tendency for blood to clot.
These clots, when formed in the arteries, cause a range of heart diseases that ultimately result in stroke or sudden death. WHF report shows that the risk for coronary heart disease is 25 per cent higher in female smokers than in male smokers while the risk of a non-fatal heart attack increases by 5.6 per cent for every cigarette smoked and persists even at only one to two cigarettes per day. Also, chewing tobacco more than doubles the risk of heart attack. Despite this dangerous twist, awareness of links between smoking and cardiovascular disease remains low in many parts of the world including Nigeria.
Smoking is also an important risk factor for stroke. Inhaling cigarette smoke produces several effects that damage the cerebrovascular system. Women who take oral contraceptives and smoke increase their risk of coronary artery disease and stroke significantly. Over time, CAD can lead to chest pain, heart attack, heart failure, arrhythmias or even death. Smoking by itself is a major risk factor for heart disease. When combined with other risk factors–such as abnormal cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, overweight, or obesity and/or diabetes –smoking further raises the risk of heart disease. Smoking also is a major risk factor for peripheral arterial disease (PAD). It is also important to avoid other people’s smoke.
The link between secondhand smoke and heart disease is well known. Each year about 38,000 people die from heart and blood vessel disease caused by other people’s smoke. Non-smokers exposed to secondhand smoke at home or at work increase their risks of developing heart diseases by 25 to 30 percent.
Senior Program Officer, CISLAC, also said to reduce tobacco consumption in Nigeria, there was need for the introduction of high price and tax measures.
“Intake of tobacco and cigarette has caused a lot of harm to the health of Nigerian citizens and we all pay for it in one way or the other,” he said. “The enactment of a strong tobacco control law is an important step but legislation alone does not signal the end of a policy advocacy campaign journey.
“The law must be effectively implemented to achieve its public health goals. In most countries, once a law is passed, regulations must be developed. Therefore, a plan for implementation is essential. “There is need to prohibit certain unnecessary interaction between government and tobacco industry. Where interactions are necessary, ensure there is transparency, prevent conflict of interest between, and within government and tobacco industry”.
There is the need for relevant government to practically enforce the non-public smoking laws in the country as well as heavily tax tobacco and price it out the reach of people by making it very expensive.
Ayobolu, a public affairs analyst contributed this piece from Lagos State.
