According to a report in the Ghana Times in November, the Ghanaian government has developed a five-year National Tobacco Control Strategy (NTCS) with the aim of reducing the country’s tobacco consumption rate and ultimately eliminating all tobacco use.
The Ministry of Health of Ghana, along with the Food and Drug Administration, the World Health Organization, and the United Nations Development Programme, has collectively developed this strategy and is urging policymakers in tobacco control to adopt it.
Baffour Awuah, Acting Director of the Technical Coordination Department of the Ghanaian Ministry of Health, has stated that the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases is on the rise due to an increase in smoking. He urges all stakeholders to actively engage in discussions and transform this document into tangible actions.
Olivia Boateng, Director of the Food and Drug Administration responsible for the supervision and management of tobacco and substance abuse prevention, has expressed concern over the trade of illegal tobacco products, which allows easier access to these products at lower prices. The country has made progress in tobacco control policies, but illegal trade has exacerbated the tobacco epidemic.
According to Borten, stakeholders involved will undergo training on an agreement aimed at eradicating the illicit trade of tobacco products domestically following the implementation of NTCS.
