The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has warned that the rapid movement of tobacco advertising and promotion onto social media, digital platforms and other emerging communication channels is creating new enforcement challenges and increasing the need for stronger surveillance and coordinated action.
Acting Chief Executive Officer of the FDA, Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Manso Opuni, said Ghana’s existing tobacco-control laws provide a strong foundation for protecting the public, but changing marketing strategies require regulators, civil society and the media to continuously strengthen their capacity to detect and report violations.
His speech was delivered on his behalf by Dr Martin Kusi, Director of the Tobacco and Substances of Abuse Directorate, at the opening of a two-day training for media and civil society organisations on the enforcement of Tobacco Advertising, Promotion and Sponsorship (TAPS) restrictions in Accra.
According to the FDA, the changing advertising environment is allowing tobacco promotion to move beyond conventional channels, creating particular concerns about exposure among vulnerable groups.
“The landscape in which tobacco products are marketed and promoted is constantly evolving. The rise of social media, digital platforms, online content, and other emerging communication channels has opened up new opportunities for tobacco promotion,” Prof. Opuni said.
He said the development poses fresh challenges for regulators and enforcement agencies and requires stronger collaboration to ensure tobacco companies and other industry actors comply with the law.
“It is therefore essential that we all continue to share our knowledge, sharpen our skills, and certainly our collective ability to hold industry actors accountable,” he said.
The training forms part of efforts to strengthen enforcement of Ghana’s restrictions on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
Ghana’s tobacco-control regime is anchored in the Public Health Act, 2012 (Act 851) and the Tobacco Control Regulations, 2016 (L.I. 2247), which prohibit tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
Prof. Opuni said the enforcement guideline being introduced is intended to provide clearer direction for identifying and reporting potential violations and applying sanctions more consistently.
He stressed that enforcement officers and other stakeholders must move beyond simply knowing the law to developing the practical skills required to apply it effectively.
“The objective is not simply to understand what the law is, but to develop competency, applying it consistently,” he said.
The two-day programme includes practical exercises and case discussions covering traditional media, social media and emerging forms of tobacco marketing. Participants are also being trained to monitor digital platforms, preserve evidence and report suspected violations through appropriate channels.
The FDA has identified digital and social media monitoring as a major gap in enforcement, making improved surveillance of online tobacco promotion one of the central objectives of the training. The programme is also seeking stronger coordination among regulators, enforcement agencies, civil society organisations and journalists.
Prof. Opuni urged participants to use the training to strengthen both their individual expertise and institutional collaboration, stressing that effective tobacco control increasingly depends on the ability of enforcement actors to keep pace with evolving industry marketing strategies.
