(VOVworld) – A meeting to mark World No Tobacco Day May 31 and Vietnam’s National No Tobacco Week was held in Hanoi on Sunday. Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam and Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien attended the event.

In her address, Minister Tien said that after joining the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control 10 years ago, Vietnamese people’s awareness of tobacco harms has been raised and the ratio of male smokers has reduced 9%. The National Assembly passed the Law on the Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harms in 2012.

Activities to prevent tobacco harms have been held regularly in Vietnam. The majority of ministries and localities have established their own steering committees for the prevention and control of tobacco harms. Minister Tien said: “The Vietnam Women’s Union has stepped up communications on the effects of smoking and the Law on the Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harmsto raise people’s awareness of the issue. I ask all ministries, sectors and localities to include smoking prevention into their annual programs. Smoking must be banned in working and public places.”