BACKGROUND: In Bangladesh, the tobacco control law requires restaurants to follow strict rules when setting up 'Designated Smoking Areas' (DSA), ensuring they don’t harm public health. The tobacco industry continues to influence opinions and behaviors among youth smokers and non-smokers. The objectives of the study are to measure the compliance of 'Smoking Areas' in restaurants in Dhaka and to observe the promotional tactics of the tobacco industry to attract smokers and non-smokers.
METHODS: Mixed approaches have been used to conduct the study. A structured observational checklist based on Section 7 of the tobacco control law. Data was collected from November to December 2023 by using the Kobo Toolbox. Purposively, 81 restaurants of 6 categories were observed based on the popularity among youth, customer reviews, and youth gathering areas in Dhaka to identify the industry tactics.
RESULTS: The study revealed that 40.7% of restaurants had smoking zones, 6.2% advertised tobacco products, and 8.6% sold cigarettes. 70% of restaurants had no smoke prevention systems for protecting non-smoking zones, and 46% had no fire-extinguishing systems. 24.2% of restaurants required customers to pass through smoking areas when entering or exiting the premises. 100% of restaurants did not maintain the compliance of "No Smoking" signage. 80% of DSA designed, promoted, and developed by the tobacco industry. In 91% of restaurants, it was observed that people were smoking cigarettes, while in 36% of restaurants, people were smoking e-cigarettes. Among these cases, 60% of the individuals were aged between 18 and 25.
CONCLUSIONS: Cigarette companies are creating smoking zones in Dhaka restaurants, targeting youth with advertising and sales. The study recommends amending tobacco control laws to ban DSAs, stop indirect advertising through DSA, prohibit tobacco sales, and strictly enforce the law and policies to protect public health and counter the industry's tactics against youth.