Tobacco industry allies hamper tobacco control in Nigeria

Two African organizations, the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) with the support of African Alliance for Tobacco Control (ATCA), highlight in a recent report how tobacco industry interference in public policies remains a major challenge for effective tobacco control in Nigeria and Africa[1].

The report entitled “Tobacco’s Big Allies – How Tobacco Companies Use Intermediaries to Promote Their Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives and Promote Their Image in Nigeria,” documents a series of cases where tobacco multinationals use intermediaries to undermine the implementation of the WHO Framework ConventionThe report's authors also map these tobacco industry allies and explain how the industry uses them to whitewash its image and develop corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities.

Through these intermediaries, the industry partners with the government and organizes events that benefit it. The report highlights how front groups whitewash the tobacco industry's image through environmental or educational projects in Nigeria. These third-party organizations organize trainings and seminars to connect and interact with government officials.

A threat to effective tobacco control in Nigeria

Nigeria ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in 2005. To fulfill its obligations under the treaty, Nigeria enacted the National Tobacco Control Act in 2015 and National Tobacco Control Regulations, adopted and gazetted in 2019.[2]. However, despite clear laws and policies in place, the tobacco industry continues to enjoy significant benefits from government. The use of intermediaries poses a threat to the advancement of tobacco control in Nigeria because it facilitates interactions with public officials, allowing multinationals to gain positive media coverage and strengthen their interference in political decision-making.

A series of recommendations to end unnecessary interactions

This report is a tool that can help the Nigerian government and public health advocates identify and address the gaps that industry, its allies, and front groups have exploited to interfere in public health policy. Some of the recommendations[4] of the report include, among others, the full implementation of the National Tobacco Control Act of 2015 and the Tobacco Control Regulations of 2019, the cessation of economic incentives and benefits for the tobacco industry, the establishment of provisions allowing government agencies to disclose minutes and proceedings of meetings and interactions with the tobacco industry. In addition, awareness-raising activities among public authorities on the issue of tobacco industry interference and the establishment of periodic declarations of absence of conflict of interest by stakeholders who may have relations with the tobacco industry.