ISLAMABAD, April 25: Tobacco industry contributes Rs36 billion to the national exchequer but also accounts for the death of 98,969 people in Pakistan annually.

Speaking at the opening of a three-day national advocacy conference on tobacco free initiative (TFI) and promotion of healthy lifestyles, WHO representative Dr Khalif Bile said the death of precious lives due to smoking was a great national loss.

Chairman Senate Mohammadmian Soomro presided over the conference, while health minister Mohammad Nasir Khan and Director General Health Mohammad Aslam also spoke on the occasion. Children of different schools also presented a tableau and skits.

The objective of the conference is to build support of a wide spectrum of policy-makers and implementers for an effective implementation of the anti-smoking ordinance promulgated in Pakistan recently to generate a firm resolution for the launch of an effective TFI for the smoking control programme as proposed by the WHO, to build alliance and create a networking with public/private sector for launch of TFI and to chalk out plan of action for launch of TFI for the year 2003.

Khalif Bile said the annual production of tobacco in Pakistan was 107,000 tons - 99 per cent of which was consumed locally thus contributing to an increase in the number of victims of tobacco- related diseases.

Dr Bile said during 2002, around 4 million people died of smoking in the world and the death toll was steadily increasing. He said unless current smoking trends were reversed, the figure was expected to rise to 10 million deaths per year by 2030. He said smoking was responsible for 90 per cent of lung cancer and was also the main cause of 75 per cent of lung and 25 per cent of cardiovascular diseases.

He said the chances of lung cancer were more in Pakistan than Japan and the US because according to a survey 36 per cent population in Pakistan indulged in smoking.

Chairman Senate emphasized the need for developing a practical strategy to combat smoking saying strategies should focus on human psyche since “we are dealing with human beings.” He also stressed community involvement in the exercise. He said the strategy should also identify factors responsible for growing trend of smoking.

“We should also conduct a study to ascertain whether tobacco advertisements were attracting new smokers or just influencing the people to change their brand,” the chairman said. He also asked the smokers that if they could not quit smoking, at least they should not induce others to smoking.

Mohammad Nasir Khan called upon the citizens to join hands to make Pakistan a smoking-free country. He gave a clarion call to the nation saying “we can’t afford the neglect of health of our citizens at any cost.”

“I wish to give a slogan, a polio-free Pakistan today and a smoke-free Pakistan tomorrow. But tomorrow has to begin today,” he said. He feared that tobacco consumption continued to increase in Pakistan quoting a survey saying more than 20 million people smoke or use tobacco in other forms. Increase in tobacco consumption was the result of several factors including an increase in population, rise in income levels and purchasing power of an individual thus making cigarette affordable.

He said many people did not know the dangers and hazards of smoking, while the glamorous advertisements by tobacco companies were recruiting more and more people in smoking.

A statement of Dr Hussein A Gezairy, regional director WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR), said the fundamental relationship between tobacco use, ill-health and death has been well-established and thoroughly documented over the years. The prevalence rate was now up to 46 per cent among adolescents aged 13 to 15 years in some countries of EMR. In other countries, 8 out of 10 students live in houses where others smoke in their presence, while 6 out of 10 were exposed to second hand smoke in public places.