Tunisia Celebrates International Day without Tobacco

2009 a year of fight against smoking in Tunisia

Tunisia is celebrating on Sunday the 31st of May the International Day without Tobacco, considering the theme “A Warning against the health dangers of tobacco". This event has a particular dimension in Tunisia mainly after declaring 2009 a year of fight against smoking, in a concretization of the decision of the Head of State, Zine Alabidine Ben Ali.The initiative, hailed by the WHO (World Health Organization), shows the concern Tunisia has for the protection of the citizen’s health and the significance the country accords to the fight against chronic diseases.On the occasion, the Ministry of Public Health is organizing two events meant to sensitize the citizen: On May 31, 2009, at the Culture Centre El Menzah 6 and on June 2, at the Faculty of Medicine in Tunis.Smoking kills each year 8 million people in the world. Several studies showed the close link between tobacco and the emergence of certain serious and chronic illnesses such as cancer and respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.In Tunisia, the situation is too much worrying as a consequence of the increase of the number of smokers of whom 55% are adults and 12,8% are teenagers (5,8% belong to the age category going from 12 to 14 years).Smoking is at the origin of the death of 6850 people per year in Tunisia. It is also responsible for 90% of the cases of lung cancer, 85% of the cases of arteries, 65% of the cases of oral cancer (mouth, lips, tongue, larynx, pharynx, esophagus), 40% of the cases of bladder cancer and 35% of the cases of myocardial infarction.To eradicate this plague, Tunisia implemented an action plan aiming at reducing the number of smokers and instating a preventive behavior to help the people concerned, notably young people.This plan aims at reinforcing awareness and information in schools, universities, workplaces, whether public or private. The efforts will depend on the various media and means of communication to report the drawbacks of tobacco and the human and financial costs of smoking.The plan also urges smokers to benefit from the services of assistance consultations created in university hospitals and centers of basic health. About sixty similar services will be established soon, in addition to the 21 currently available.Within this framework, doctors and specialists of respiratory diseases were trained to deal with smokers with medical and psychological means. Some 1800 doctors will profit from this training in 2009, carried out in collaboration with the National Sickness Insurance Fund (CNAM). The effort is centered on the application of the provisions of the law into force relating to the prohibition of smoking in public spaces.Some 1730 health officials profited from a training to control the application of the law and the recording of infringements. In addition, regional commissions were created on the level governorates to control the application of the law.A national meeting will be organized in June 2009 to discuss the role of organizations and associations in the fight against smoking. The meeting will be crowned by the proclamation of a deal to concretize the initiative of the Head of the State to declare 2009 a year against smoking.