Despite some progress, African countries remain susceptible to tobacco industry lobby

The African Tobacco Control Alliance (ATCA) has just published the second edition of the 2023 African Tobacco Industry Interference Index. It shows a strong disparity between African countries, depending in particular on the existence of a tobacco control law in each country. Among the countries studied, Cameroon, Zambia and Tanzania achieve the lowest scores in the face of tobacco industry interference, while Botswana, Ethiopia and Burkina Faso show better protection.

Regional breakdown of the Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index[1], the 2023 African Tobacco Industry Interference Index has just been released[2]. This index measures the responses provided or not provided by public authorities to protect their public policies from interference by the tobacco industry. It is published by the African Tobacco Control Alliance (ATCA), in collaboration with the African Tobacco Industry Monitoring and Policy Research Center (ATIM) and the Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control (GGTC).

This study is part of the obligations of the countries parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). This international treaty, in particular through its article 5.3, aims to protect public tobacco control policies from interference by the tobacco industry. This legally binding obligation must be transposed into domestic law with provisions that are based on the good practices recorded in the implementation guidelines of this article. This is therefore an essential subject with regard to the effective implementation of anti-smoking measures.

Seven indicators, from the application guidelines of article 5.3

The purpose of this index is in particular to support the arguments of tobacco control stakeholders to decision-makers in their countries, with a view to adopting anti-smoking laws that are protected from the commercial interests of the industry. Seven indicators have been established, which refer directly to the various measures provided for in the implementing directives of Article 5.3:

• the participation of the tobacco industry in the development of public policies,
• unnecessary interactions with the tobacco industry,
• conflicts of interest with this industry,
• the advantages granted in particular through the agreements and partnerships which could be established with it,
• tobacco industry corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives,
• preventive measures adopted by public authorities to protect their public health policies from interference by industrialists.

Disparity in the situations of African countries

18 African countries were included in the 2023 edition of this index. Compared to the scores obtained in 2021, Burkina Faso, Botswana and Ethiopia are the countries where the most progress has been observed. Botswana has indeed included in its anti-tobacco law a provision protecting its policies from interference by the tobacco industry. For its part, Mauritius stands out for being the first African country to have implemented standardized plain packaging, as well as all the anti-smoking measures promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO). Two countries, Côte d'Ivoire and Zambia, have seen more modest progress and one country (South Africa) has remained unchanged in this ranking.

Eight countries, however, have seen their situation deteriorate. Cameroon, Zambia and Tanzania are the countries where interference by tobacco companies has been the strongest. Cameroon stands out in particular for having constantly postponed the adoption of an anti-smoking law since 2012. With the Tanzania, it is the country where the influence of the tobacco industry on the government is most sensitive. Kenya is the country whose rating has deteriorated the most since 2021.

Ways to keep industry out of public policies

The report makes several recommendations to African states. In particular, it advises denormalizing the tobacco industry's CSR activities and maintaining the necessary distance from tobacco manufacturers, as required by Article 5.3 of the FCTC. Accelerating the adoption of anti-smoking laws and ratifying the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products help to assert a country's political will. Drawing the attention of public stakeholders to the industry's actions and adopting a code of conduct to limit contact with tobacco manufacturers are essential steps. Producing studies on the consumption of tobacco products and on uses related to new tobacco and nicotine products sheds light on the directions to give to anti-smoking policies. Promoting a tobacco-free economy and agriculture, establishing local or regional partnerships and encouraging civil society actions are finally all conditions that must be met to keep the tobacco industry out of public policies.

©Tobacco Free Generation

M.F.