Art competition celebrating upcoming 'World No Tobacco Day'

More than 100 artistic anti-smoking designs have already been sent to the Ministry since the competitions launched at the beginning of May 2008.

The competition is an initiative to encourage the public to take an active approach against smoking, one of the key causes for the nation's diminishing health. As part of the GCC Tobacco Control Strategy, entries will also be selected for use as health warnings on tobacco packaging.

The competition invites all members of the public to use their creativity to design and compose a poster and/or a digital photo that best conveys this years' World No Tobacco Day 2008 slogan, "Tobacco-Free Youth", accompanied by a warning or a health message.

Entries are divided into four categories: school students, university students, professionals and general public. On May 29th, H.E Mr Humaid Al Qutami, UAE Minister of Health, will announce 2 winners from each category during a full day event at the Al Bustan Rotana Hotel in celebration of this years' World No Tobacco Day.

"We are looking for entries that most effectively communicate the message we are trying to convey to smokers, which is to Stop Smoking," commented Dr. Wedad Maidoor, Director of Primary Health Care Department and Head of MOH Tobacco Control Team. "We have chosen to divide the entries into these categories because this will introduce various perspectives that are crucial when trying to reach every member of the general public, with special attention to the youth. This competition will allow us to see the negative aspects of smoking from the eyes of the members of the public."

World No Tobacco Day, observed annually on May 31st, was instated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to reduce the high death rate caused by smoking through raising awareness. This year the focus is on the youth. According to the American Lung Association, every day, nearly 6,000 children under 18 years of age start smoking and of these, nearly 2,000 will become regular smokers.

In the UAE, according to the 2002 Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS), approximately 15% of young males and 25% of adult males are smokers.

"Encouraging the youth to be more involved with our anti-smoking initiative is one way of raising their awareness," said Rany Victor, Senior Brand & Sales Institutional Manager, Novartis Consumer Health Arabian Peninsula. "Dubai is working towards a smoke-free nation and it is our responsibility to provide young people with the support and encouragement they need to make the right choice when it comes to quitting."