By Omotayo Edubi
The World Health Organization (WHO) said that approximately 30,000 Nigerians die of Tobacco-related diseases yearly.
The World Health Organization Country Representative, Dr Walter Kazuli Molumbo says this in his speech to mark World Tobacco’s Day 2022 in Abuja.
He described tobacco as a silent killer which manifests through cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and other ailments.
Dr Walter expressed worries that non-communicable diseases were increasingly overtaking communicable diseases in terms of the number of deaths they cause in Nigeria.
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According to him, close to 30,000 lives are lost yearly due to tobacco-related illnesses which are far more than the 3,000 lives claimed by COVID-19 in the three years of the pandemic.
“World Tobacco’s Day 2022 with the theme: “Tobacco: A threat to our environment,” presented an opportunity for Nigeria to right the wrongs of the past when the country failed to take necessary measures to check tobacco consumption,” he said.
However, Molumbo commended the effort of the federal government to curb the negative impact of tobacco on the citizen.
He particularly commended the setting up of an emergency inter-ministerial committee to Fastrack action on advocacy and sensitization program.
Molumbo said the next meeting of the United Nations in September may be an opportunity for Nigeria to add her voice to the global efforts to end tobacco consumption.
