Alcohol Control Policies in 46 African Countries: Opportunities for Improvement
Research article
Abstract
Aims
There is little information on the extent to which African countries are addressing alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm, which suggests that evaluations of national alcohol policies are needed in this region. The aim of this article is to examine the strength of a mix of national alcohol control policies in African countries, as well as the relationship between alcohol policy restrictiveness scores and adult alcohol per capita consumption (APC) among alcohol users at the national level.
Methods
The study examined national alcohol policies of 46 African countries, as of 2012, in four regulatory categories (price, availability, marketing and driving under the influence), and analyzed the restrictiveness of national alcohol policies using an adapted Alcohol Policy Index (API). To assess the validity of the policy restrictiveness scores, the study conducted correlational analyses between policy restrictiveness scores and APC among alcohol users in 40 countries.
Results
Countries attained a mean score of 44.1 of 100 points possible, ranging from 9.1 (Sao Tomé and Principe) to 75.0 (Algeria), with low scores indicating low policy restrictiveness. Policy restrictiveness scores were negatively correlated with and APC among alcohol users (rs = −0.353, P = 0.005).
Conclusions
There is great variation in the strength of alcohol control policies in countries throughout the African region. Tools for comparing the restrictiveness of alcohol policies across countries are available and are an important instrument to monitor alcohol policy developments. The negative correlation between policy restrictiveness and alcohol consumption among alcohol users suggests the need for stronger alcohol policies as well as increased training and capacity building at the country level.
