By Emmanuel Onwuka
Imagine a school bus weaving through the morning rush. Inside, children in neatly pressed uniforms laugh, chat, and prepare for another day of learning.
Suddenly, someone nearby lights a cigarette or begins using
an electronic nicotine delivery device (vapes, e-cigarettes). Within moments,
smoke drifts into the air around the children. Some wrinkle their noses, others
cough, while all of them involuntarily inhale toxic tobacco fumes.
This is not a movie scene. It is the reality for millions of
Nigerians exposed to the indiscriminate use of tobacco products in public
places.
According to the Tobacco Control Data Initiative (2018), an
estimated 1.3 million Nigerian youths (3.7%) currently use tobacco or nicotine
products, while about 2.4 million (6.5%) have tried them at least once. These
figures highlight the growing exposure of young people to tobacco and nicotine products
and underscore the urgent need for stronger action.
Smoke-free cities are therefore not just about protecting
adults. They are about safeguarding the next generation. What children see,
smell, and breathe today can shape their health and behaviour for years to
come.
Across Africa, several countries have shown that creating
smoke-free environments is both achievable and necessary. According to the
African Tobacco Control Alliance (2021), Botswana has one of the strongest
tobacco control laws on the continent. The legislation closely aligns with the
World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), which
Botswana ratified in January 2005. One of its key objectives is to protect the
public from second-hand smoke by creating smoke-free public environments.
South Africa has also taken practical steps to strengthen
tobacco control. Since 2020, Cape Town has partnered with the Partnership for
Healthy Cities to improve compliance with smoke-free regulations in public
buildings while raising awareness of the dangers of second-hand tobacco smoke.
Mauritius has equally established itself as one of Africa's
tobacco control leaders. In 2008, it became the first country on the continent
to introduce pictorial health warnings on tobacco products. It later became the
first African nation to fully implement standardized plain packaging. These
milestones show that African countries are taking bold, evidence-based steps to
reduce tobacco use, protect public health, and create healthier environments
for future generations.
What Smoke-Free Cities Can Achieve
Imagine a city where smoking is prohibited on public buses,
in parks, schools, restaurants, cinemas, shopping centres, stadiums, and
recreational facilities.
Children could play, learn, eat, and travel without being
exposed to second-hand tobacco smoke. According to the World Health
Organization (WHO), comprehensive smoke-free laws protect non-smokers from
harmful tobacco smoke, reduce youth smoking, encourage smokers to quit, improve
public health outcomes, and help change social norms around tobacco use. These
are not simply health policies. They are investments in healthier families and
safer communities.
The Hidden Danger Children Breathe
Second-hand smoke comes from burning tobacco products and
the smoke exhaled by smokers. According to the WHO, there is no safe level of
exposure. Children are especially vulnerable because their lungs and immune
systems are still developing.
Exposure to second-hand smoke increases the risk of asthma
attacks, pneumonia, bronchitis, ear infections, chronic respiratory symptoms,
reduced lung growth, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) among infants.
Children cannot choose the air they breathe. Adults and
governments must ensure that public spaces do not expose them to avoidable
health risks.
Nigeria's Progress and Challenges
Nigeria has made important progress in tobacco control over
the past decade. The National Tobacco Control Act of 2015 and the National
Tobacco Control Regulations of 2019 restrict smoking in many public places and
seek to protect Nigerians from second-hand smoke.
Yet implementation remains the country's biggest challenge.
Across many Nigerian cities, smoking still occurs in public places despite
existing laws. Cigarettes are also sold within prohibited distances of schools
in some communities.
Some states are beginning to demonstrate stronger
leadership.
During the 2026 World No Tobacco Day commemoration, the
Chairman of Ado-Ekiti Local Government, Hon. Bosun Osaloni, announced that
smoking is prohibited in all public places across the city, including schools,
motor parks, and offices. He explained that the directive would be backed by a
local government by-law that domesticates the Ekiti State Prohibition of
Smoking in Public Places Law, giving it stronger legal effect.
In Imo State, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Chioma Vivian
Egu, recently, during a press briefing on World No Tobacco Day, highlighted the
harmful effects of tobacco use and second-hand smoke, noting that tobacco
remains a leading cause of cancer, heart disease, respiratory illnesses, and
other non-communicable diseases. She has also warned about the growing use of attractive
packaging, flavoured products, influencer promotions, and other marketing
tactics aimed at young people.
Rivers State, one of the first states to domesticate Article
8 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, is also strengthening its
tobacco control efforts. During a stakeholder meeting with the Nigeria Tobacco
Control Alliance, the Acting Permanent Secretary of the Rivers State Ministry
of Health, Dr Vincent Wachuku, stressed the need to protect young people from the
tobacco industry's evolving tactics and to raise awareness about the dangers of
nicotine addiction.
These examples show that progress is possible when governments
move beyond policy commitments and begin enforcing practical measures that protect
public health.
The Way Forward
Nigeria cannot continue spending billions on treating
tobacco-related diseases while investing so little in prevention. Every day that
action is delayed, more children are exposed to second-hand smoke, more young
people become addicted to nicotine, and more families bear the cost of
preventable diseases. Smoke-free laws must move beyond paper and into practice.
Every local government should adopt and enforce smoke-free by-laws that align
with the National Tobacco Control Act and state laws.
Environmental health officers, task forces, and local
security agencies should conduct regular inspections in markets, motor parks,
schools, restaurants, bars, and public offices. Laws that are not enforced
cannot protect lives.
Governments must also reduce their reliance on donor funding
by making tobacco control a domestic funding priority. Federal and state
governments should allocate resources to public education, enforcement,
monitoring of the tobacco industry, research, and smoking cessation services.
Investing in prevention today will save lives and reduce future healthcare
costs.
Public awareness must be continuous rather than occasional.
Many Nigerians still do not know that smoking is prohibited in several public
places or that second-hand smoke poses serious health risks, particularly for
children.
Governments should invest in sustained campaigns across
radio, television, social media, schools, religious institutions, and community
outreach, delivered in local languages.
Creating smoke-free cities is not the responsibility of
government alone. Policymakers must strengthen and enforce smoke-free laws.
Business owners should keep their premises smoke-free. Parents, teachers,
religious leaders, and community leaders must continue advocating for healthier
environments.
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