The government through the Ministry of Health and Child Care is working on introducing the National Alcohol Policy which seeks to outlaw the sale of alcoholic products during certain days and to limit the number of hours when alcohol can be sold. The government said that it is worried about alcohol abuse and the National Alcohol Policy is said to be concerned with imparting behaviour change. Some of the proposes under the new policy include:
- To bar the sale of alcohol during the week
- To regulate the number of hours to sell the products
- To provide guidelines on the consumption of alcohol during special events like parties and weddings based on the venue
- To ban any alcohol advertisement within 100 metres of a road intersection, school, clinic, hospital, church and old people’s homes.
- To arrest those found selling alcoholic products to pregnant women.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Child Care Retired Brigadier-General Dr Gerald Gwinji said:
We took the proposed new policy to the working party which comprises officials from various ministries and it passed.
It also went to the Cabinet Committee on Social Services and Poverty Eradication and it went through. It now awaits to go to the Cabinet.
The current one is a revised version of the 2010 draft after realising that the initial one had gaps. The policy is concerned with imparting behaviour change.
More: Sunday Mail