Training to improve communication capacity on tobacco harm prevention for reporters

(CLO) On November 21, in Hanoi, the Ministry of Information and Communications held a training conference to improve communication capacity on tobacco harm prevention.

Speaking at the Conference, Ms. Phan Thi Hai, Deputy Director in charge of the Tobacco Harm Prevention Fund, Ministry of Health , informed that in Vietnam, tobacco use causes 85,500 deaths each year. Passive smoking causes 18,800 deaths. A total of 104,300 deaths per year are due to tobacco-related diseases.

Leaders of the Legal Department, Ministry of Information and Communications delivered the opening speech of the training course. Photo: Le Tam

"Tobacco use creates a burden of disease and reduces the quality of the labor force. Of these, more than 15 million Vietnamese smokers and tens of millions of passive smokers are at risk of tobacco-related diseases and premature death. The burden of disease caused by tobacco use will be more evident in the next 10-20 years when current smokers face the health impacts of tobacco use," said Ms. Hai.

Not only does it have a major impact on health, tobacco use is also causing huge economic losses. Specifically, recent research shows that the annual economic cost of tobacco use in Vietnam is estimated at 108 trillion VND, equivalent to 1.14% of GDP (2022). This figure is 5 times larger than the contribution of tobacco tax revenue to the national budget. The costs include 16.4 trillion VND from direct medical costs, 5.9 trillion VND from indirect costs due to illness and 85.8 trillion VND due to premature death. In addition, 49 trillion VND is spent by people to buy cigarettes every year.

Training conference to improve communication capacity on tobacco harm prevention. Photo: Le Tam

Mr. Nguyen Tuan Lam, Tobacco Harm Prevention Expert of the World Health Organization (WHO) added that in 2010, the rate of adults smoking was 47%, by 2015 it was 45%, in 2021 it was 41%, however it is estimated that this rate is starting to increase. If there are no interventions, this number could increase to 43% by 2030, which is reflected in increased production and consumption.

"An important factor leading to the current high rate of tobacco use is the low tax and price of tobacco in Vietnam. Tobacco tax and retail price in Vietnam are extremely low compared to other middle-income countries in the world as well as in the ASEAN region. The increase in tax and price of tobacco in Vietnam in recent times is too low compared to the growth of per capita income, making tobacco cheaper and easier to buy over time," Mr. Lam commented.

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/tap-huan-nang-cao-nang-luc-truyen-thong-ve-phong-chong-tac-hai-cua-thuoc-la-cho-phong-vien-post322259.html