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Vision for Alternative Development, Ghana (VALD Ghana) and other civil society organisations have backed the Food and Drugs Authority’s position on banning alcohol advertisements by celebrities.
The CSOs say the decision by some celebrities to engage in alcohol advertisements for monetary benefits or personal gains without recognising its adverse effect on children and young people is quite appalling.
According to the WHO, alcohol use kills three million yearly and is the seventh most crucial risk factor for mortality as well as the number one risk factor for people aged 15–49 years.
A statement issued by VALD on behalf of the CSOs wants the FDA to sustain the ban to avoid the incubation of a new generation of alcohol addicts and its implications, especially on children.
“The WHO earlier this year declared that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption suggesting that even moderate drinking can have an effect on the consumer leading to high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and digestive problems; cancer of the breast, mouth, throat, esophagus, voice box, liver, colon, and rectum; weakening of the immune system, increasing the chances of getting sick; Learning and memory problems, including dementia and poor school performance,” it said.
“We, the entire civil society fraternity in public health stand with the Food and Drugs Authority and the government of Ghana in their decision to continue to implement the ban on celebrities from alcohol advertisement.
“It is a step in the right direction to avoid the incubation of a new generation of alcohol addicts and the associated diseases and the socioeconomic burden,” the VALD statement added.
Below is the full statement:
