BATN Reiterates Commitment to End Illicit Tobacco Trade
British American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN) has reiterated its commitment to total eradication of illicit and substandard tobacco products in Nigeria market. The company regretted that despite efforts to combat this global menace, Nigeria loses about 30 million pounds to counterfeit tobacco trade. At a media parley in Lagos to mark this year’s World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) the company revealed that combined efforts with regulatory bodies and other stakeholders including Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Consumer Protection Council (CPC), National Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigeria Customs Service and the trade partners has brought down illicit trade from 80 per cent in the last 10 years to less than 10 per cent currently. The aim of the forum, according to BATN’s Area Head of Corporate Affairs, Mrs. Oluwaseyi Ashade, was to add voice to this year’s WNTD with the theme ‘Stop Illicit Tobacco Trade’. The company, she said, had done so much to reduce the menace of illicit tobacco trade which impacted negatively on their business, adding that the company was pushing for more stringent measures to halt the illegal trade and save Nigeria from attendant huge costs by tax evasion, unemployment and public health. Ashade revealed that if the criminal conducts of the illicit traders were not checked, it would impact negatively on the company, government, trade partners and the health of Nigerians who would be exposed to unhealthy alternatives. She said BATN had contributed over N213 billion to the coffers of the federal government as taxes while reiterating the company’s support against child labour. According to Head, Government Affairs West Africa Area, Odiri Erewa-Meggison, the combination of intelligence sharing, information on how to identify fakes, consumer education , trade partners collaboration to enforce brand equity rights, the media and other stakeholders helped to reduce and will ultimately eradicate illicit tobacco trade in Nigeria completely. She also attributed the reduction in counterfeit products to BATN self-regulation which was in line with international standards, tracing and tracking of their products to reduce cloning. She added however that the company could not win the battle against illicit tobacco trade alone without the active collaboration of the federal gov- ernment. She said that funds realized from illicit trade was being used to sponsor crimes and criminality including terrorism and human trafficking. She averred that in this era of Boko Haram fundamentalism in Nigeria which was devastating the Northern part of the country; it had become more urgent than ever before for government’s active participation in the fight against illicit tobacco trade. Also speaking, Director of Legal and External Communications, Freddy Messanvi said illicit tobacco trade posed as much danger for government, security agencies, the future of Nigerian youths as it does for BATN and its trade partners. He reiterated the need for government involvement in fighting illicit trade adding “if we don’t pay attention to illicit trade, we will go back to ten years when it was 80 per cent. Today illicit tobacco trade has been reduced to less than 10 per cent from the time we came on board.” Responding to questions on marketing to under aged, Messanvi reiterated that BATN was a responsible company and markets its products in a responsible manner. “We ensure that only informed adults who understands the health implications of tobacco consumption are invited to our events and we make them aware of the dangers.” Every year, on 31 May, WHO and partners mark World No Tobacco Day (WNTD), highlighting the health risks associated with tobacco use and advocating for effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption. For 2015 edition WHO called on countries to work together to end illicit trade of tobacco products which constituted major global concern, including health, legal and economic, governance and corruption. One of the major goals of the WNTD 2015 campaign was to raise awareness on the harm to people’s health caused by the illicit trade in tobacco products, especially the youth and low-income groups, due to the increased accessibility and affordability of these products due to their lower costs.