Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Policy-makers, civil society and the public have been asked to take action to ensure that the departments concerned work towards exploring the possibilities of plain cigarette packaging.

Regional Director, World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region Dr Ala Alwan in a message on World No Tobacco day, said that 12 countries in the region were already implementing pictorial health warnings, recognizing the importance of policies related to packaging and labelling in reducing the demand for tobacco.

He said countries needed a comprehensive approach, including policies on labelling and packaging of tobacco products, to reduce the demand for tobacco and its impact on health. He said many countries already had some form of packaging and labelling policy in place – whether in text or picture form. As the next step, WHO recommends adopting plain packaging.

He said plain packaging was a policy that was applicable to all tobacco products, whether they were smoked or smokeless products. It is also a recommendation of the guidelines for implementation of Articles 11 and 13 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the world’s first ever public health treaty.

He said that plain packaging is one of the important measures that will contribute to reducing the demand for tobacco, in addition to reducing the attractiveness of tobacco products and restricting use of the package as a form of advertising and promotion.

He said it would also limit the use of misleading packaging and labelling by the tobacco industry, increase the effectiveness of health warnings and so help to reduce demand. However, it is imperative to remember that no single measure for tobacco control works alone, he added.