BACKGROUND AND IMPLEMENTATION CHALLENGES: In 2015, Nigeria enacted its National Tobacco Control Act and, in May 2019, passed its National Tobacco Control Regulations. These laws prohibit tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship (TAPS), with a particular focus on protecting children under 18 years. However, the tobacco industry continues to circumvent them by leveraging Nollywood, Nigeria’s film industry and Africa’s largest movie platform, to glamorise smoking. With Nollywood ranking second globally in output and reaching millions worldwide through services like Netflix and Amazon Prime, its influence—especially on young viewers—is immense.
INTERVENTION OR RESPONSE: CAPPA launched the #SmokeFreeNollywood campaign in 2020, mobilising strategic action to enforce the TAPS ban and break the tobacco industry’s grip on Nollywood. The campaign collaborated with Nigeria’s National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) and key Nollywood stakeholders, including producers and actors. Through advocacy meetings, targeted media activities, and social media campaigns, CAPPA encouraged the development of a Code of Practice and a film-specific Regulation to curb the promotion of smoking in movies.
RESULTS AND IMPACT: In 2024, the NFVCB enacted the first-ever independent Regulation in Africa targeting the glamorisation of tobacco products, smoking, and ritual killings in films and entertainment content. This Regulation enhances existing national tobacco control laws by mandating the display of health warnings at the start and end of films, on-screen warnings during scenes involving tobacco or nicotine use, and ratings for movies containing tobacco consumption scenes, as well as disclaimers to prevent brand marketing. Additionally, filmmakers have adopted a self-regulatory Code of Conduct to ensure compliance.
CONCLUSIONS: These achievements reflect progress in curbing the tobacco industry's exploitation of entertainment platforms to target youth. A key takeaway from this development, which can serve as a best practice for replication, is the critical importance of public health advocacy organisations building strategic alliances with regulatory bodies based on strong mutual objectives.