GEORGE Town bagged silver at the 2nd Asean Smoke-Free Awards for its efforts in advocating and enforcing change.
Penang health committee chairman Daniel Gooi said the award presented during the 17th Asean Health Ministers Meeting in Kuala Lumpur recognised the city’s continuous efforts to create a healthier urban environment.
“This recognition is particularly meaningful because George Town is not only a Unesco World Heritage Site but is also a living city where people live, work, study and visit every day.
“Protecting our public spaces and ensuring cleaner air is not only a public health responsibility, it is part of our responsibility to protect the character, heritage and sustainability of George Town.
“This achievement is the result of sustained efforts across different agencies and sectors.
“It reflects the commitment of our community to create healthier public spaces,” he said during a press conference to showcase the award at Komtar.
The South-East Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (Seatca) announced that George Town placed second, behind the Philippines’ Baguio City which received the gold award while Kuala Lumpur received bronze.
Gooi said while Penang had made progress in reducing harm associated with traditional tobacco products, there was the emergence and growing availability of new nicotine products, including e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products and nicotine pouches.
“This creates new challenges, particularly in protecting young people from nicotine addiction and preventing the normalisation of nicotine use.
“We need strong cooperation between governments, health agencies, local authorities, civil society and communities.
“Public health cannot be addressed by a single agency or level of government alone.
“As a state government, we believe that local action matters,” he said.
Gooi said George Town’s recognition through the Asean Smoke-Free Awards demonstrated how city-level and state-level initiatives could contribute to broader regional public health goals.
“We recognise that there is still much more work to be done.
“Our goal is to build healthier communities and environments that can benefit our people in the long term,” he said.
Seatca knowledge and information manager Tan Yean Lian said there were 11 criteria that must be met for the award assessment.
“We look into the smoke-free policy, task force or working group, political will, strategies, mass media, inspection, key messages, and government support, among others.
“We carry out the assessment in various rounds.
“We have an interview session and review documents as well.
“The selection process goes through various reviews before the place is scored,” she elaborated.
