Vision for Accelerated Sustainable Development Ghana (VAST-Ghana) has urged the government to ban alcohol advertisements. The public health advocacy group also calls for a complete overhaul of Ghana's national alcohol policy. This demand follows new international scientific evidence detailing severe health risks from even low levels of alcohol consumption.
VAST-Ghana issued this call to action on July 10, warning that long-held public beliefs about the safety of moderate drinking are incorrect. The group stressed the need for immediate legislative intervention to safeguard public health. This aligns with the World Health Organization's (WHO) 2023 declaration that no level of alcohol consumption is safe for health.
The call to action follows a global study, the "Alcohol Intake and Health Study," published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs on June 8. This research found that health risks increase progressively with consumption. Risks rise sharply after just one drink per day, challenging the idea that light drinking is healthy. Independent data from Movendi International, a global alcohol policy organization, further connect regular alcohol consumption to a spike in non-communicable diseases (NCDs). These NCDs include cancer, cardiovascular disease, and liver disease.
Ghana faces a serious burden from NCDs, which now account for nearly 45% of all deaths nationwide. The country's 2023 STEPS Survey, supported by WHO, shows that 22.6% of Ghanaian adults are current drinkers. This figure rises to 30.6% among men. The Mental Health Authority also recorded 3,765 alcohol-related mental health disorders in 2023. These figures highlight the significant impact of alcohol on public health.
VAST-Ghana argues that aggressive marketing and corporate normalisation by the alcohol industry push these numbers higher. This leaves families and the national healthcare system to bear the economic and medical costs. The group also brought attention to international concerns that industry interference actively delays or suppresses independent alcohol research. This suggests a systemic issue undermining public health efforts.
To address this growing crisis, VAST-Ghana presented five key demands to policymakers and public health institutions. First, they want formal integration of alcohol harm prevention into Ghana's national NCD response. This means recognising alcohol use as a primary preventable risk factor for diseases. Second, they demand comprehensive restrictions on alcohol advertisements, especially those targeting young people. Third, the group calls for nationwide public education campaigns to show the direct links between alcohol use and serious health issues like cancers and organ failure.
Fourth, VAST-Ghana insists on protecting national health policy from commercial interference by the alcohol industry. Finally, they advocate for fiscal and regulatory measures. These include earmarked health taxes and prominent health warnings on alcohol products. Such measures aim to reduce consumption and fund NCD care. VAST-Ghana believes Ghana can achieve significant public health gains, similar to its success in evidence-based tobacco control legislation, by applying the same principles to alcohol-related mortality.