Diri Harps on Behavioural Change Communication to Tackle Excess Sugar Intake

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, has emphasised on the need for the federal government and other critical stakeholders to use more of behaviour change communication to fight against excessive consumption of sugar in the country.

Governor Diri laid the emphasis while declaring open a one-day Regional Consultation Forum on ‘Sugar-Sweetened Beverages’ in Yenagoa yesterday.

Represented by his Deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, the governor posited that effective use of behaviour change communication would dissuade people from excessively taking such beverages far better than fixing taxes on them.

It will be recalled that the federal government introduced the sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) tax through the Finance Act of 2021, which levies a N10 tax on each litre of non-alcoholic drinks to curb the excessive intake of sugar.

While not condemning the idea of taxing such consumables in the country, he, however, strongly recommended the use of a multi-dimensional approach towards solving the problem rather than completely depending on taxation.

 According to Diri, “The increasing prevalence rate of non-communicable diseases in the society was not only caused by sugar-sweetened beverages but also the inability for people to eat and live right due to poverty.”

The governor assured the organisers of the programme of his administration’s readiness to support any effort geared towards improved public healthcare in the state.

He said the weekly five-kilometre ‘Prosperity Walk’ held every Thursday introduced by his administration was promoting wellness in the participants, and therefore, called on the people to take the exercise seriously.

He said: “While Bayelsa State will be willing to be part of your advocacy, we believe that there are other dimensions to solve this problem. That is why we have introduced a weekly ‘Prosperity Walk’.

“Every Thursday, we take about five kilometres of walking. And so, if you accumulate that for a period of one year, you will know the volumes of calories you would have burnt.

“That does not mean we are encouraging the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. But we are only saying that behaviour change communication will be a better way of solving the problem.

“There is no way you can change people’s behaviour or stop them from taking something by increasing or introducing a tax.

“Non-communicable diseases are becoming a major issue in our society. Some of them are not necessarily caused by what we consume but by what we don’t eat as a result of poverty.

“Unfortunately for us, Nigeria has become the headquarters of poverty. When a man is not having enough to eat, he will eat whatever that is available.”

 In his welcome address, the Executive Director of Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Mr. Akinbode Oluwafemi, described sugar-sweetened beverages as major causative agents of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which account for a substantial proportion of Nigeria’s mortality rate.

According to him, evidence from 80 countries in the world shows that SSB tax has proved to be the most effective policy instrument for combating NCDs by reducing the affordability and accessibility of citizens to sugary beverages.