Togo smokefree compliance monitoring in public places after 3.5 years of implementation of the law (2017)

Background Togo's 2010 tobacco control law bans smoking in indoor public places, workplaces, and means of public transport except in hotels, restaurants, bars, and public transport stations, where designated smoking areas (DSAs) are permitted. The objective of this study was to monitor the level of compliance with the smokefree law in four key public places after 3.5 years of implementation. Methods Monitoring was conducted in Lomé, Sokodé, and Atakpamé during February- March 2017. Data was collected from a convenience sample (n= 383) of four types of public places: bars, hotels, restaurants, and transport buildings. An observational checklist was used to collect data on the following law requirements: (1) no persons smoking any tobacco products indoors; (2) no indirect indicators of smoking (presence of ashtrays, cigarette butts) visible indoors; (3) presence of DSAs with all requirements; (4) presence of No Smoking signage (at entrance and inside the venues); and (5) presence of No Smoking signage with all requirements. Results The level of smokefree compliance (no person smoking any tobacco products indoors) in the public places was high overall (84%). No indirect indicators of smoking were observed indoors in 81% of the venues. Only one venue had a DSA, which was not compliant with all requirements. The level of compliance with signage was very low. No Smoking signs were observed in only 6% of the venues at the entrance and 16% inside. Signage that met all law requirements was present in only 4% of the venues at the entrance and 9% inside. The level of compliance by type of venue is shown in the table.   BARS (n=185) RESTAURANTS (n=82) HOTELS (n=98) TRANSPORT BUILDINGS (n=18) TOTAL (n=383) No smoking occurring indoors 84.3% 86.6% 88.8% 50.0% 84.3% No indirect indicators of smoking (ashtrays, butts) 76.2% 86.6% 91.8% 50.0% 81.2% No Smoking sign at entrance with all requirements 1.1% 4.9% 8.2% 5.6% 3.9% No Smoking sign inside with all requirements 2.2% 9.8% 21.4% 5.6% 8.9% [Level of compliance with SF law, by venue] Conclusions Togo has made progress in implementing the smokefree provisions of their tobacco control law, especially in restaurants and hotels. However, authorities should actively monitor and enforce the law, particularly in transport buildings where the level of compliance was much lower