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Gabon: health experts want an increase in cigarette prices

Posted on 01.06.2023 at 4:22 p.m. by Blaise MOMBENGA

This is one of the recommendations that was made on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day, by experts and health professionals at the national tobacco control forum on Wednesday May 31, 2023.

To combat tobacco consumption in Gabon, health experts made numerous recommendations during the national anti-tobacco forum last Wednesday. One of the recommendations is to increase the price of cigarettes. Indeed, experts and health professionals believe that with this solution, cigarette consumers will be less interested and will be discouraged.

Mechanically, when prices rise, intermittent smokers buy packs less often, those who smoke daily will restrict themselves more, while people who have quit are less tempted to get back into it. As for young people, they are obviously less likely to start smoking. An effective measure that has proven itself in several countries, including France, according to specialists. We learn on the site of the AGP.

In addition, the forum also recommended the establishment of a multisectoral framework to fight against tobacco consumption, train health personnel to get students out of this trap, make the Forum annual, create in university hospital centers the addiction treatment services and updating data on the number of victims in our country. Unfortunately, Gabon does not have recent figures on the tobacco epidemic.

Note that the forum saw the presence of the Minister of Health Guy Patrick Obiang and the representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) Dr. Inoua Aboubacar and civil society. It should also be remembered that Gabon has adopted legal instruments to accelerate the fight. This is decree 0287/PR of 17 May 2016 on the ban on smoking in places open to the public. And decree 0285/PR on the prohibition of advertising, sponsorship, sponsorship and the protection of people in the face of the use of these.

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