Harboursandport.com: Bayelsa - The excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) by Nigerians has increased the risk of obesity, and diabetes in the country.
Stakeholders and health experts who gave the warning in a communiqué issued at the end of deliberation of the one-day Regional Stakeholders Forum for South-South on SSB held on Thursday in Yenagoa and organized by the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) and the National SSB Tax Coalition with support from the Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI), noted that Nigeria currently tops the list of countries at the largest risk level in Africa.
They called for an increase in the SSB tax on all sugar-sweetened beverages so as to discourage or reduce their consumption.
The event which was declared open by the Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, had in attendance representatives of the Ministries of Health and Environment from Bayelsa, Edo, Rivers, Delta, Akwa Ibom, and Cross River States as well as health experts, civil society organisations and the media.
According to the communiqué read by Philip Jakpor, Director of Programmes CAPPA, “The explosion in consumption of SSBs in Nigeria is a public health concern that is connected to the rise in NCDs such as weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart and kidney diseases, and cancer, among others.
“The decision of the Nigerian government to impose a N10 per litre Excise Tax on SSBs is laudable but still falls short of at least 20 per cent of the final retail price of SSB products as recommended by the WHO and global health experts.
“The aversion of consumers to the SSB Tax regime in Nigeria is largely due to misinformation and misrepresentation of SSB Taxes by the soft drinks and beverages industry. False marketing and advertising campaigns of the SSB industry reinforce this misinformation.
“Nigeria is ranked the fourth largest global consumer of SSBs and portends dangerous consequences for public health.
“State-level engagements are largely missing in the discourse on SSB Tax and SSBs in general and there is still a yawning gap in the level of behavioral change education required by Nigerians to wean themselves off SSBs issue than presently obtains.”
The forum therefore called for sustained collaboration by the government at state and federal levels to engender public awareness of the health risks associated with SSB consumption and the benefits of the SSBs tax policy.
“Relevant stakeholders, including traditional institutions, educational institutions, civil society organizations, the media, and healthcare professionals should be actively engaged and recruited in addressing the SSB menace. They should also be at the forefront of correcting industry-driven misinformation on SSB tax.
“SSB Tax should be on the agenda of the National Council on Health and the government should increase taxation on SSBs towards achieving a 20 per cent increase in the final retail price of targeted sugary drinks as recommended by WHO.
“Need for the establishment of a monitoring and evaluation and accountability framework to track the implementation and impact of the current SSB tax policy as well as the need for complementary regulatory instruments like Front-of-Pack Labelling, restricting availability and marketing of SSBs in school environments among others.
“There is a need for national legislation that advocates for the imposition of a pro-health tax. The Federal Government and regulatory authorities must design and enforce penalties for companies that default on SSB tax obligations.
“Government should earmark revenue generated from the SSBs tax to support and strengthen public health systems in Nigeria as well as encourage parents to prioritize what their wards consume and particularly groom the benefits of consuming products that do not contain SSBs,” the communique stated.
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