4 September 2024, Cairo, Egypt – On 3 September, as part of its ongoing activities to celebrate World No Tobacco Day 2024, the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean organized an event that included an exhibition of drawings by children from the Region on tobacco control and the announcement of the results of the One Voice video campaign on tobacco.
Opened by WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr Hanan Balkhy, the event was attended by representatives of the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population, the League of Arab States, NGOs, anti-tobacco associations and public figures who advocate against tobacco.
During the event, Dr Balkhy presented certificates of merit to the winners of the One Voice video campaign which the Regional Office launched to encourage the participation of young people in efforts to raise awareness of the health hazards and economic problems caused by tobacco use.
In her opening remarks, Dr Balkhy underlined the importance of increasing awareness of the strategies used by the tobacco industry to target young people and encourage them to consume tobacco in all its deadly forms. She urged all partners to continue working with WHO to expose these deceptive tactics and help create a tobacco-free generation.
Dr Balkhy highlighted the need to adhere to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and urged signatory countries to implement its articles, including prohibiting the promotion of tobacco products, adopting pricing and taxation policies that discourage tobacco use and banning smoking in public places.
Dr Balkhy stressed that all types of tobacco, including e-cigarettes, are very harmful to public health and that quitting tobacco use protects health and saves lives.
The Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean’s Director of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health Dr Asmus Hammerich gave an overview of WHO's strategy to build a younger generation that values health and is fully aware of the deceptive tactics used by the tobacco industry. He highlighted the innovative and creative role of youth in reaching out to their peers, as reflected in the exhibition of drawings and videos in this year's One Voice video campaign on tobacco.
In a technical presentation, Dr Fatimah El-Awa exposed some of the tricks used by tobacco companies, including the sponsorship of influencers. She revealed that between 2007–2016, 100 hashtags associated with tobacco companies had been viewed 25 billion times, underlining how big tobacco companies will stop at nothing to reach their audience even when it means killing 8 million people a year with their products.
In interventions during the celebration, partners and anti-tobacco advocates renewed their commitment to continue efforts to raise awareness of the hazards of tobacco use, especially among young people at schools and universities, and expressed their appreciation of WHO’s leading role in tobacco control.
