By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON – Maldives on Monday has taken a unique step to tackle the problem of smoking and tobacco consumption.
The Maldives health ministry said that the country has imposed the world’s first generational smoking ban, as part of which those born after January 1, 2007, have been prohibited from smoking and buying and selling tobacco.
The ban came into effect over the weekend and marks “a historic milestone” in the Maldives’s efforts to “protect public health and promote a tobacco-free generation”, the ministry said.
With this nationwide generational tobacco ban, the Maldives has become the first country in the world to take such a measure.
“Under the new provision, individuals born on or after 1 January 2007 are prohibited from purchasing, using, or being sold tobacco products within the Maldives,” a health ministry statement said.
“The ban applies to all forms of tobacco, and retailers are required to verify age prior to sale,” it added.
The ban was mooted by President Mohamed Muizzu earlier this year.
The ban will also apply to visitors entering the Maldives, a popular for luxury tourism and home to 1,191 small coral islets.
The Maldives has an existing ban as part of which the import, sale, distribution, possession, and use of electronic cigarettes and vaping products is prohibited for everyone in the country.
