Turn the clock back three decades and the rate of death from smoking in New Zealand was more than twice that in the UAE.
In 1990, about 158 out of every 100,000 people in New Zealand died from smoking each year, according to OurWorldinData. The same year, the rate in the UAE was about 60 per 100,000.
The best thing that any government can do is to implement in full the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and its guidelines
Deborah Arnott,
Action on Smoking and Health
Today, the two countries’ relative performance is very different. The annual death rate in the UAE has gone up slightly, standing at nearly 66 per 100,000 people, according to the most recent figures, which are from 2017.
Reflecting a decline in smoking rates sustained over decades, New Zealand now has an annual death rate from smoking little more than one third what it was in 1990, with just under 54 deaths per 100,000.
Future generations
New Zealand recently announced a move to reduce smoking’s toll: a ban on anyone born after 2008 buying cigarettes or other tobacco products in their lifetime.
It has been a leader in clamping down on tobacco, which is smoked by about one in five adults across the world (about 35 per cent of men and six per cent of women).
Rates have fallen heavily in much of the developed world, but they are declining in much of the developing world, too, including in countries that never reached the high levels of smoking experienced by richer nations in the 20th century.
The UAE’s smoking rates are thought to be below the global average, with about 14 per cent of men and two per cent of women regularly lighting up.
Risk to health
While there are other lifestyle-related factors in the UAE that are harmful to health, including poor diet and lack of exercise – which are blamed for the high rates of obesity and diabetes – smoking remains one of the most significant.
“Smoking is a major factor for cardiac disease,” said Dr Davinder Pal Singh, a cardiologist at NMC Royal Hospital in Dubai Investments Park.
“Lack of physical activity and an unhealthy diet are also contributors to cardiac disease.”
That many people are turning away from tobacco is understandable: smoking is the cause of multiple health harms, including lung cancer and cardiovascular disease, and it kills more than seven million people around the world each year.
Changing the law
“The best thing that any government can do is to implement in full the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and its guidelines,” said Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, a UK campaign organisation.
The WHO’s highest-level measures to cut demand for tobacco include five key criteria, among them having taxes that comprise at least 75 per cent of the retail price of the most popular brands, and a ban on smoking in areas such as government facilities, offices and hospitality venues.
Other measures include large warnings covering at least half the front and back of the cigarette packet, a ban on advertising, promotion and sponsorship, and cessation programmes at least partly funded by the authorities.
According to a study published in 2017 in The Lancet by researchers in Canada and the US, countries that implemented smoking controls to the highest level “experienced significant decreases in smoking prevalence”.
The study also stated that tobacco tax and price increases were the “fastest-acting and most effective” policy measures.
While the UAE has not introduced all of the most stringent recommended measures, regulations around tobacco in the Emirates have tightened.
In October 2017, the UAE brought in its first "sin tax”, when a 100 per cent levy was introduced on tobacco and tobacco products, along with energy drinks and carbonated beverages. This meant that tax comprises 50 per cent of the retail price, not 75 per cent, as the WHO suggested.
Just over two years later, a 100 per cent tax on e-cigarettes and vaping liquid was brought in, as was a 50 per cent tax on fizzy sugary drinks.
The government also said then that a cigarette must cost at least 40 fils, meaning that a packet of 20 costs at least Dh8, which is more than double the price of some of the cheapest cigarettes.
Polls have indicated that about three-quarters of UAE smokers have not changed their habits because of the taxes, although a minority have.
Other recommended measures brought in by the Emirates include warnings that cover at least half of the main display area of packaging.
Also as advised, smoking is banned on public transport and some other locations, and advertising is prohibited in print and electronic media, although some tobacco sponsorship is allowed.
Shisha remains popular, although some studies indicate it is more harmful than cigarettes, and medwakh, the strong tobacco smoked in pipes, is also widely used.
What next for the UAE?
While the UAE has introduced a series of measures to cut tobacco use, it has yet to follow New Zealand’s first-of-its-kind age restriction.
“New Zealand has consulted on this and decided it’s right for them,” Ms Arnott said.
“However, our belief is that the priority is to raise the age of sale from 18 to 21, as this will be easier to enforce and there’s already good evidence from the US that it works.”
In the UAE, as in many other countries, the age of sale is currently 18, so this may be an area where a tightening of restrictions could cut smoking rates again.
If successful in shifting people away from tobacco, death rates may fall in the decades to come, although such mortality figures in the UAE may in part reflect the smoking activities of expatriates, and the tobacco habits they developed before they moved to the Emirates.
Pathaan
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MATCH INFO
Borussia Dortmund 0
Bayern Munich 1 (Kimmich 43')
Man of the match: Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)
ICC Awards for 2021
MEN
Cricketer of the Year – Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Test Cricketer of the Year – Joe Root (England)
WOMEN
Cricketer of the Year – Smriti Mandhana (India)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Lizelle Lee (South Africa)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Tammy Beaumont (England)
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs: 2019 Infiniti QX50
Price, base: Dh138,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 268hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy: 6.7L / 100km (estimate)
Company profile
Name: Fruitful Day
Founders: Marie-Christine Luijckx, Lyla Dalal AlRawi, Lindsey Fournie
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2015
Number of employees: 30
Sector: F&B
Funding so far: Dh3 million
Future funding plans: None at present
Future markets: Saudi Arabia, potentially Kuwait and other GCC countries
The five pillars of Islam
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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More coverage from the Future Forum
School counsellors on mental well-being
Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.
Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.
Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.
“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.
“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.
“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”
Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.
The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.
At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.
“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.
“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.
"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
match info
Manchester United 3 (Martial 7', 44', 74')
Sheffield United 0
Company%20profile
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Match info:
Real Betis v Sevilla, 10.45pm (UAE)
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 3 (Silva 8' &15, Foden 33')
Birmginahm City 0
Man of the match Bernado Silva (Manchester City)
Gender equality in the workplace still 200 years away
It will take centuries to achieve gender parity in workplaces around the globe, according to a December report from the World Economic Forum.
The WEF study said there had been some improvements in wage equality in 2018 compared to 2017, when the global gender gap widened for the first time in a decade.
But it warned that these were offset by declining representation of women in politics, coupled with greater inequality in their access to health and education.
At current rates, the global gender gap across a range of areas will not close for another 108 years, while it is expected to take 202 years to close the workplace gap, WEF found.
The Geneva-based organisation's annual report tracked disparities between the sexes in 149 countries across four areas: education, health, economic opportunity and political empowerment.
After years of advances in education, health and political representation, women registered setbacks in all three areas this year, WEF said.
Only in the area of economic opportunity did the gender gap narrow somewhat, although there is not much to celebrate, with the global wage gap narrowing to nearly 51 per cent.
And the number of women in leadership roles has risen to 34 per cent globally, WEF said.
At the same time, the report showed there are now proportionately fewer women than men participating in the workforce, suggesting that automation is having a disproportionate impact on jobs traditionally performed by women.
And women are significantly under-represented in growing areas of employment that require science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills, WEF said.
* Agence France Presse
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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6025 – Dh20
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The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor
Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission 10-speed automatic
Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km
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more from Janine di Giovanni
PSL FINAL
Multan Sultans v Peshawar Zalmi
8pm, Thursday
Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
Brief scores:
Liverpool 3
Mane 24', Shaqiri 73', 80'
Manchester United 1
Lingard 33'
Man of the Match: Fabinho (Liverpool)
