Civil society organisations (CSOs) working in tobacco control have applauded the “outstanding leadership” of the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, and the Nigerian delegation at the 11th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP11) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC) in Geneva.
They, however, urged the government to ensure that this strong global performance translates into more decisive domestic action.
In a joint statement, the groups praised Nigeria’s resoluteness in resisting tobacco industry interference and standing firmly on the side of public health throughout the conference.
COP11, held from 17–22 November, gathered more than 1,400 delegates from governments, international organisations, and civil society across 162 Parties to the WHO-FCTC. The high-level meeting reviewed twenty years of progress under the global treaty and deliberated on strategies to accelerate its implementation.
The statement—signed by Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), the Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance (NTCA), the Centre for Youth Inclusion and Development (CYID), and the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)—highlighted Nigeria’s strong interventions in support of strict regulation of emerging tobacco and nicotine products, alongside other critical public health measures.
Delivering Nigeria’s high-level address, Dr. Salako presented new national data and outlined strengthened enforcement and regulatory actions reaffirming the country’s commitment to the WHO-FCTC and to protecting Nigerians’ health.
“Despite persistent overtures and pressure from the tobacco industry and its allies, Nigeria stood firmly on the side of public health diplomacy, making timely, principled, and decisive interventions on critical issues such as the regulation of emerging tobacco and nicotine products, stronger liability and environmental provisions, and forward-looking measures to protect Nigerians,” the coalition said.
The CSOs also pointed to Nigeria’s pivotal role within the African Group, noting that its leadership helped break negotiation deadlocks, stabilise discussions, and strengthen the bloc’s collective position.
“As a recognised leader within the African region, Nigeria’s principled voice was relied upon at crucial moments. Our delegation’s performance reaffirmed the country’s reputation as a nation committed to the highest standards of public health protection,” the groups noted.
They further commended the contributions of Nigerian civil society and health experts, including Dr. Omotayo Francis Fagbule of the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, describing their involvement as evidence of the “whole-of-society strength driving tobacco control in Nigeria.”
However, the CSOs stressed that this global performance must now be matched with robust domestic implementation, especially as Nigeria slipped further in the latest global ranking on tobacco industry interference.
“After being a strong and reliable voice for public health in Geneva, the real work begins at home,” the statement said. “Nigeria must now translate this leadership at the global negotiation table into firm leadership in implementation. The commitments we defended abroad must be matched with concrete actions within our borders.”
They called for stronger enforcement, accelerated regulatory action, full protection of public health policies from tobacco industry interference, and adequate, predictable, and transparent domestic funding to operationalise the National Tobacco Control Act (NTC Act) and its Regulations.
“Without sufficient and accountable funding, the NTC Act risks remaining largely symbolic,” they warned.
“Nigeria has shown what principled leadership looks like. The next chapter is to demonstrate that same leadership in the daily work of implementation so that our citizens—especially our young people—can fully benefit from the protections we championed on the global stage.”
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