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The Zambia National Marketeers Credit Association (ZANAMACA) has intensified calls for the swift enactment of the Tobacco Control Bill, urging the government to prioritise the legislation in order to protect traders and the wider public from the harmful effects of tobacco.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, ZANAMACA president, Frank Kameya, appealed to the administration of Hakainde Hichilema, through Parliament, to fast-track the Bill, describing it as both a public health safeguard and an economic necessity.
Kameya said the association viewed the proposed law as essential to shielding hardworking men and women — particularly youths — from contracting serious illnesses linked to smoking.
“As the primary representative body for Zambia’s informal economy operators, we consider the enactment of this Bill not just a health policy issue, but a critical economic and human rights matter affecting marketeers, traders and small-scale farmers involved in the sale of tobacco and related products,” he said.
Read more: Consumer watchdog backs proposed Tobacco Control Bill in Zambia
Kameya noted that many traders worked in semi-enclosed market spaces with limited ventilation, leaving them exposed to second-hand smoke on a daily basis.
“Our members are the heartbeat of the Zambian economy, yet they operate in environments where they are constantly exposed to the dangers of second-hand smoke. The lives of our traders, their children and the millions of customers who visit our markets are more important than the profits of the tobacco industry,” he said.
He warned that tobacco-related diseases such as cancer, diabetes and respiratory illnesses frequently resulted in the loss of breadwinners in the informal sector, pushing families into extreme poverty.
Kameya also expressed concern over the easy availability of cheap tobacco products near trading areas, which he said disproportionately targets young people — the future workforce of the country.
On market safety, the association reiterated its commitment to transforming Zambia’s markets into smoke-free, healthy and safe trading zones — a goal it believes could only be achieved through the legal backing of the Tobacco Control Bill.
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