• Dangerous and harmful effects of tobacco consumption cannot be overstated.
• Tobacco is responsible for over 7,000 deaths annually in Zambia.
• Implementing laws that prohibit smoking in public places is necessary.

Centre for Trade Policy and Development (CTPD) has urged local authorities in collaboration with Law Enforcement Agencies to enhance enforcement and implementation of smoke-free laws.

CTPD Legal Researcher Luyando Muloshi said the dangerous and harmful effects of tobacco consumption cannot be overstated as it is one of the leading causes of non-communicable diseases such as lung cancer, ischemic heart disease, stroke, asthma, respiratory infections among other.

Ms. Muloshi stated that according to the Ministry of Health, tobacco is responsible for over 7,000 deaths annually in Zambia, translating to a health cost burden of approximately K2.8 billion each year.

She noted that the unfortunate aspect of tobacco use is that it puts non-smokers, as well as smokers, at risk of disease and death from second-hand tobacco smoke.

“According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, second-hand smoke contains more than 7,000 harmful chemicals,” she cited, adding that non-smokers who are exposed to second-hand smoke at home or at work increase their risk of developing lung cancer by 20–30%.

Ms. Muloshi as such observed that implementing laws that prohibit smoking in public places is necessary to minimize or completely eradicate exposure of citizens to the harmful effects of second-hand tobacco smoke.

“We are therefore calling on local authorities in collaboration with Law Enforcement Agencies to enhance the enforcement and implementation of smoke-free laws,” She pointed out.

“We further urge the Government to enact the Tobacco Control Bill, which if enacted, will domesticate the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) and address issues associated with the implementation of smoke free zones, such as defining the scope of tobacco products, establishing parameters to minimize second-hand exposure, and developing age-appropriate information and education communication campaigns,” she indicated.

She also cited the Public Health Act and its corresponding Public Health (Tobacco) Regulations that says smoking in hospitals, health centers, nursing homes, kindergartens, elevators, public transport, and schools for persons up to 21 years is prohibited.

The CTPD legal researcher noted that Smoking in any public area or workplace is further prohibited under the Local Government (Prohibition of Smoking in Public Places) Regulations.

“The enforcement and implementation of these so called “smoke-free laws” has been mandated to Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) operating under the public health department of the local authorities, and these officers have the power and authority to conduct inspections and investigations (and to even enlist the assistance of the police when necessary) to ensure compliance with smoke-free laws, ” said Ms. Muloshi who stated that this message resonates well with the recent commemoration of World Environment Day, with the theme ‘Only One Earth’.

She indicated that not smoking in public places as designated by the law is an important element in protecting the only earth we have and various lifeforms and their ecosystems.

“However, a study recently published by CTPD assessing the implementation of smoke free laws in the country found that despite the legal requirements for smoke-free public zones, the implementation of the said laws has remained below par and leaves much to be desired,” she revealed.

According to her, “This has been attributed largely in part to the modus operandi of the EHOs, which the study found to have been reactionary as opposed to proactive – they typically only respond to public complaints or queries despite having the authority and mandate to actively conduct random inspections to ensure compliance.”