JEDDAH, 5 June 2004 — Treatment of diseases caused by smoking eats up about 15 percent of the Health Ministry’s annual budget, according to Suleiman Al-Sabiy, the chairman of the Charitable Society to Combat Smoking.
The government spends an estimated SR30 billion on public health every year.
Sabiy called for international efforts to fight tobacco use as there are 1.3 billion smokers in the world.
“About 85 percent of cancer cases are caused by smoking,” he added.
The number of smokers in the Kingdom is estimated at more than six million, and Minister of Health Dr. Hamad Al-Manie has said the number of smokers is increasing.
Al-Manie has acknowledged the failure of the Health Ministry’s campaign to raise awareness on the harmful effects of smoking and called for a program to promote positive thinking among people to help them stop smoking.
Saudi Arabia bans smoking in government departments and advertising of tobacco products in its media. But it is estimated that smoking grows at the rate of 50 percent among men and 10 percent among women. According to a recent study carried by Al-Watan Arabic daily, smokers in the Kingdom spend nearly SR12 billion on cigarettes annually.
Tobacco is the fourth most common risk factor for diseases worldwide, according to some studies. The economic costs of tobacco use are equally devastating. Tobacco users are also less productive due to increased risk of sickness.
A 1994 report estimated that tobacco use resulted in an annual global net loss of $200 trillion, a third of this amount being in developing countries.
“People also spend a lot of money on tobacco at the expense of basic requirements,” Sabiy said, calling for strict enforcement of the smoking ban in public places.
