Submitting Recommendations for Developing and Reinforcing Tobacco Control Programs in GCC - Tobacco control committee holds meetings in Kingdom of Bahrain

Kingdom of Bahrain hosted the twenty third meeting of the gulf committee of tobacco control. The meeting was held during 5th &6th March. The meeting was started with welcoming speech by Dr. Mariam Adhabi Al Jalaham, assistant deputy of preliminary care and public health, deputy chief of national tobacco control committee, member of executive body in the council of GCC Ministers of Health- welcoming the participating delegations. The meeting discussed a number of major issues related to combating smoking and tobacco in GCC, including a discussion about updating gulf technical unified regulation no. GSO 246/2011 concerning tobacco packets labels. It also includes applying this regulation to the tobacco products shown or sold in the markets and duty free. New posters of health warnings on the cigarette packets and tobacco products were also shown in the meeting. Other important issues were also discussed such as simple wrapping of tobacco products, the issue of narghile and electronic cigarettes and protocol of illegal trafficking in tobacco products. At the end of the meeting, many important recommendations were submitted to the executive bureau of the council of Ministers of Health in GCC and many other important recommendations which will contribute to developing and reinforcing tobacco control programs in the GCC states. The meeting was attended by a representative of the Executive Office of Health Ministers in the GCC states and the members of the Gulf Committee for Tobacco Control in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait , Oman, Qatar, as well as the Republic of Yemen . Delegation of the Ministry of Health of Bahrain attended the meeting .it was headed by Dr. Maha Mukla Kuwari representative of Bahrain in the Gulf tobacco control committee , Dr. Eglal Al Alawi head of smoking and tobacco control group , Ms. Mariam Janahi Supervisor of smoking and tobacco control group , Mr. Hussein Al-Rayes inspector of antismoking and tobacco control , first Lieutenant Mr. Sayyed Gomaa Ajllan, representative of customs Affairs, attended the meeting, , Mr. Sami Mohammed, Director of Foreign Economic Relations , representing the Ministry of Finance , Ms. Silwana Abdul Ghani , head of the development of specifications and a representative of the Ministry of Industry and trade .