[Intl-tobacco] 21 African Nations Back Tobacco-Free Continent

Thu, 02 Nov 2000 16:01:35 -0800

21 African Nations Back Tobacco-Free Continent

by Staff Reporter / Financial Gazette  (Harare)
Source: All-Africa.com, Thursday, 11/2/00
 Harare

Twenty-one African countries have pledged to work for a tobacco-free
continent
and urged tobacco-producing nations to replace the crop with other
alternatives, but Zimbabwean producers fear that this will spell
disaster to an
already ailing economy.

The declaration was made last week at a meeting in Nairobi by African
parliamentarians and health practitioners under the auspices of the
World
Health Organisation (WHO), which is whipping up support for tough
tobacco
control measures.

"African countries should draft and enact comprehensive tobacco control
legislation and help tobacco farmers to plant alternative crops," said
the
declaration issued at the end of the six-day meeting.

Phasing out tobacco and replacing it with alternative crops is advocated
by the
WHO's proposed Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which is
due to
come into effect in 2003 and is the first worldwide tobacco control
treaty.

The WHO is calling for higher taxes to reduce production and
consumption; bans
on advertising, especially that targeting young people; as well as
restrictions
on smoking in work and public places.

The aim is to reverse current smoking trends in the world, which has
over one
billion adult smokers and four million smoking-related deaths every
year,
almost two million of them in Africa where smoking prevalence is
estimated to
be 2,5 percentage points higher than in other developing countries.

The WHO says that if current trends are not reversed, tobacco-related
deaths
will rise to 10 million a year by 2030, with the Third World accounting
for
over 70 percent of them.

"Ultimately, the WHO would like to control everything from production,
consumption to marketing," Zimbabwe Tobacco Association (ZTA) public
relations
executive Ray Mawerera told the Financial Gazette this week.

"They are saying: 'yes, we're aware of the impact FTCT will have on
developing
countries and those concerns will be taken into account when we do the
final
treaty'.

"But there's a lot of scepticism about that. Turning to alternative
crops has
been suggested, but how these will be found and if they are feasible at
all are
questions that have not been answered." Some of the problems faced by
tobacco
growers attempting to switch to alternative crops include the fact that
tobacco
is often grown on poor soils that might not support other crops.

Alternatives might also not generate as much income and require
investment that
might be beyond the means of tobacco growers.

Leaf buyers give logistical, technical and financial support to tobacco
growers
that they might not be willing to provide for other produce and there is
also a
danger that prices might plummet if tobacco producers turn to
alternative crops
en masse.

"For the above reasons, among others, all attempts to diversify into
alternative cash crops have met with little financial success and
consequently
farmers continue to grow tobacco out of necessity," the Air Cured
Tobacco
Association of Zimbabwe said in a submission to the WHO public hearings
held in
Geneva last month.

The WHO and the World Bank have indicated that they might give
"transitional
assistance" to farmers who are affected by a global tobacco control
treaty, but
this has not met with much enthusiasm.

In its presentation to the WHO public hearings, the ZTA said indication
of
support was "couched in vague, non-specific terms that suggest a
preoccupation
with merely wishing to pacify critics and give the impression that the
issue
(is) being addressed".

The ZTA would like to see the WHO coming up with a detailed
diversification
fund to support the switch to alternative crops. The fund should
consider
problems faced by tobacco growers in turning to alternatives and
guarantee
growers against future losses.

In its presentation at last week's Nairobi conference, the Organisation
of
African Unity said: "To curtail the production of tobacco without
sustainable
and viable choices may create political instability when Africa's
economies are
fragile and stagnant." In Zimbabwe, whose economy is under stress and
which
will for several years feel the effects of commercial farm invasions and
the
resultant disruption to farming, the impact could be devastating.

At least 5 500 small and large-scale tobacco farmers as well as about
116 667
workers supporting 584 000 people could be adversely affected by tobacco

controls, as would other sectors of the economy.

Tobacco exports comprise about 30 percent of total national revenue and
sustain
Zimbabwe's commercial, industrial and banking sectors as well as the
maintenance of schools, housing and other social services.

"If you consider that tobacco is the largest foreign currency earner,
the
largest employer of labour and supports many downstream industries, then
the
impact of the convention is huge," Mawerera said.

The ZTA and transnational tobacco corporations have called for the
protection
of all stakeholders in the FCTC treaty.

The WHO took a small step by holding last month's public hearings, where

submissions were invited from tobacco firms, producer countries and
anti-smoking organisations.

However, the tobacco industry fears that the international health
organisation
might be paying lip service to transparency and the inclusion of all
stakeholders.

The ZTA said it hoped "the call for submissions and the public hearings
themselves are not mere public posturing to give the appearance of
fairness and
that consideration will be given to the special circumstances and
concerns
raised by those who may be negatively affected by a too-restrictive and
prescriptive convention".

Cigarette manufacturer British American Tobacco (BAT) added: "What we
seek is
sensible regulations, an end to pointless mud-slinging and recognition
that it
makes no sense to exclude companies such as ours who know the product
and its
science, who know the customer and who are working hard to operate
responsibly." BAT offered to help governments in preventing smoking by
people
under 18, ensuring that the public is informed about smoking risks,
helping
smokers to quit and identifying lower risk tobacco products.

"We agree that there is an important need to reduce the health impact of

tobacco use. We openly acknowledge the health risks associated with
smoking and
we want to play our part in doing something about them," the company
said.

The ZTA added: "We agree that the tobacco industry must be involved in
widespread awareness initiatives to increase knowledge of the risks of
tobacco
use.

"We would support reasonable regulatory frameworks for tobacco and
tobacco
products in so far as they target the preservation of the health of the
individual without impinging on other fundamental freedoms and rights of
either
individual adults or body corporates."