Kenya: Writer calls for regulation of alcohol business

"Regulation of the alcohol business can't wait" is the title of an op-ed in the East African Standard (Nairobi) by David Ndetei, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Nairobi. Ndetei observes that a number of African countries have taken measures to control the alcohol industry:

Gambia and Eritrea have banned advertising on national television and radio. Mauritius and Gabon have restricted it. Mauritius has also banned sponsorship of sports and youth events by the alcohol business. On the advertisements, however, there is a health warning. Seychelles has restricted advertising on national television, but banned it on radio and billboards. In Benin, alcohol advertisements must be accompanied by health warnings.

"But Kenya's response to the challenges of alcohol is one of the worst in the world," says Ndetei. He advocates controls on alcohol advertising and increased alcohol taxes to limit the harmful consequences of alcohol consumption. Read the whole piece.