OKOA Anti-Smoking Campaign - Tanzania

The OKOA Society sent out a letter to raise awareness to an e-mail list of development people and organisations working for tobacco awareness. The OKOA Society has started to re-design its original rice husk stoves which emit a lot of smoke in a way that much of the smoke is diverted away from the cooking place. They believe that through collaborative efforts, solutions can be found and resources to mobilise expertise both local and foreign to join hands in this initiative to avert this critical exposure of women to a health hazard can be achieved.

Women, children, health, tobacco.

Women and young children of between 0 to 5 years in all villages in Tanzania engage in "compulsory smoking" daily at households through the cooking activity or process. Cooking generally takes place at an open three stone stove. The three stone stoves and most of the metal charcoal stoves are not fuel efficient, and do not control the smoke emitted from the firewood. Children, especially the younger ones will usually be around the mother. Since the three stone stoves do not have chimneys smoke emitted by the firewood is inhaled directly by the naive women and children.