Baguio's Smoke-Free Program Wins International Award From The World Health Organization

Photo Courtesy || Cris Barba via Baguio City Times

Cordillera - The summer capital of the Philippine bagged an international award from the World Health Organization (WHO) for its smoke-free programs.

The City received the Healthy Cities Award from WHO under the category of "Sharing Clean Air: Committed to multispectral implementation of smoke-free laws. 

According the the Public Information Office - Baguio, the city was cited for the best practices and innovations it adopted and implemented in the community to promote and protect the health of its urban population amid the challenges of the pandemic.

The awards program by the AFHC WHO-Western Pacific Region Office has been done since 2004 and every two years thereafter “to encourage cities in the Western Pacific Region to continue to innovate and demonstrate effective and efficient ways of promoting health and urban populations.”  

The city’s smoke-free advocacy is anchored on Ordinance No. 34 -2017 or Smoke-Free Ordinance which prohibits the use, sale, distribution and advertisement of cigarettes and other tobacco products with corresponding penalties imposed.

LGU Baguio had done a tremendous job in implementing the ordinance like the continuous information-education-communication (IEC) campaign to educate the residents; conduct of regular compliance monitoring of residents and establishments in the barangays;  provision of assistance to smokers willing to quit under smoke cessation program; and training of enforcers in the barangays level to augment manpower implementing the ordinance.

source || Public Information Office - Baguio City