Let the world say ‘enough is enough’

The country’s Capital has been selected to host the 16th World Conference on Tobacco or Health (WCTOH) in 2015, a triennial gathering of international advocacy, public policy and health research experts working together to achieve the goals of the world’s first public health treaty — the World Health Organisation’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC). “In years to come, we want Abu Dhabi 2015 to be remembered as the place where the world collectively said ‘enough is enough’,” said Dr  Wael Al Mahmeed, Board Member of the Emirates Cardiac Society, which collaborated on the bid to host the conference. “Tobacco use is not just a problem for individual people or nations; it is a collective health responsibility for mankind.” Tobacco use is a major public health problem globally and results in six million deaths each year, according to the WHO. Most of these tobacco-related deaths now occur in low- and middle-income countries, regions that the WCTOH has specifically prioritised for inclusion in the 2015 summit. The WCTOH will mark its Middle East debut at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) in March 2015, when the five-day conference will convene 3,000 specialists from governmental and non-governmental organisations collaborating on medical, public health, and public policy agendas related to global tobacco control. The conference was a collaborative effort by the Emirates Cardiac Society, the Health Authority – Abu Dhabi (HAAD), and the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority. HAAD believes the conference will leave a considerable legacy in preventing new smokers from taking up the habit, and aiding smoking cessation efforts throughout the emirate and wider UAE. Currently, 25 per cent of deaths in the UAE are directly linked to smoking-related diseases. “The use of tobacco is one of the main risk factors of non-communicable diseases, one of the greatest burdens on the economics of health care in many different regions around the world and in the emirate of Abu Dhabi,” said Mohamed Sultan Al Hameli, HAAD Chairman. Support for tobacco control has been growing steadily since the FCTC went into force in February 2005. The UAE ratified the treaty in November 2005, and today 174 countries representing 87.4 per cent of the world’s population are party to the treaty.