Ekiti declares Ado-Ekiti ‘smoke-free city’

Ekiti State Commissioner for Health, Oyebanji Filani, has canvassed commitment to empowering communities with accurate information and strengthening regulations to dissuade residents, particularly youth, from smoking.

This is as the Chairman, Ado Local Government, Bosun Osaloni, officially declared the state capital city, Ado Ekiti, a “smoke-free city” on Friday.

Osaloni said with this declaration, “we (council) pledge to domesticate in Ado Ekiti Local Government area, the existing Ekiti State Prohibition of Smoking in Public Places Law, 2012”.

Filani and the council boss spoke in Ado Ekiti on Friday during the flag off of Ekiti State Smoke-Free Project in commemoration of World Tobacco Day 2025 organised by the state Ministry of Health in partnership with the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA).

The commissioner, represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Mrs Olusola Gbenga-Igotun, said that “tobacco use remains one of the leading causes of preventable death worldwide, responsible for millions of lives lost each year”.

Reflecting on the theme, “Unmasking the appeal: Exposing the tobacco industry’s tactics,” Filani lamented that the tobacco industry had been masking the harsh realities of addiction and diseases, particularly targeting youths through sleek packaging, sweetened flavours and social media campaigns”.

The commissioner, who urged the need for sensitisation and enlightenment to fill the regulatory gaps and public misinformation, said, “Today, we must commit ourselves to unmasking these tactics and advocating for truth.

“We must empower communities with accurate information, strengthen regulations to close loopholes and support those on the journey to quit tobacco use.

Our youth deserve to grow up in environments free from the manipulation of profit-driven industries”.

To make the declaration effective, the council boss, Osaloni, pledged to “sensitise communities in the council areas on the dangers of tobacco and second-hand smoke and as well support the implementation and enforcement of the Ekiti State Smoke-Free initiatives across all wards and protect our children, workers and elders from the harms of tobacco.

“Let this be the start of a new era, one where the health of our people is placed above profit, and where clean air becomes a standard, not a privilege.

“We welcome the support of all stakeholders in taking this message to every home, school and street,” the council boss said.

CAPPA Executive Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi, hailed the state government, Ado Local Government and stakeholders including the religious leaders and transporters for their declaration and commitment to smoke-free Ekiti State,

The CAPPA leader said, “With this declaration, Ado Ekiti joins a global movement of subnational governments and cities that are taking bold steps to reduce tobacco exposure and protect the right to breathe clean air

Oluwafemi said that the Smoke-Free Cities Campaign is a globally recognised public health strategy driven by evidence and championed by institutions like the World Health Organisation.

He said, “Across the world, smoke-free policies have helped save lives, lower healthcare costs and transform social attitudes towards tobacco, through monitoring tobacco use and prevention policies, protecting people from tobacco smoke, offering help to quit tobacco use and warning about the dangers of tobacco”, among others.