March 2023

Over the weekend, the Joint Enforcement Officers of the Tobacco Control Act in The Gambia conducted an exercise to monitor and reinforce compliance with the Tobacco Control Act 2016 in the provincial parts of the country. The team, which comprised of the Gambia Police Force, The Gambia Revenue Authority (Custom Officers), public health officers, and environmental inspectors, conducted foot patrols to monitor public compliance with the provisions of the TC Act. The exercise was supported by Raid-The Gambia in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, as part of its operational support grant received from the African Capacity Building Foundation to strengthen its institutional capacity to participate and actively take part effectively in tobacco control interventions. The operation exercise was conducted in North Bank Region East, Lower River Region, Central River Region South, and Upper River Region, respectively. Overall, the compliance of the public on the public smoking in the provincial parts of The Gambia is improving, including the ban on selling single sticks of cigarettes, the display of tobacco products, and selling to minors. Attached is a picture from the operation exercise conducted