China's Business Leaders Pledge to Put Out Workplace Smoking in Shanghai
Wu Qixuan
DATE:  Jun 06 2018
/ SOURCE:  Yicai
China's Business Leaders Pledge to Put Out Workplace Smoking in Shanghai China's Business Leaders Pledge to Put Out Workplace Smoking in Shanghai

(Yicai Global) June 6 -- Chinese business leaders came together today to agree to promote smoke-free workplaces across the country at an event in Shanghai's Lujiazui financial district organized by Shanghai Pilot Health Promotion Center.

More than 100 senior company leaders from eight different industries including finance, insurance, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and manufacturing jointly signed a letter pledging their commitment to smoke-free workplaces at a CEO Roundtable on Cancer-China event.

The pledge letter detailed their specific commitments and actions to take to create a completely smoke-free environment at all their workplaces in China.

A comprehensive smoke-free law was passed in Shanghai on March 1, 2017, making all indoor public areas and workplaces non-smoking areas.

Despite the progress made, second-hand smoke remains a serious issue in the country overall, with exposure rates at work among the highest in the world. Some 100,000 people die from second-hand smoke nationally in China each year, data from the WHO shows.

"The WHO plans to initiate a series of events this year to encourage visionary business leaders in China to voluntarily take part in the workplace tobacco control campaign", said Mr. Kelvin Khow Chuan Heng, tobacco campaign technical officer at WHO China.

A smoke-free Lujiazui is a great footnote to China's emphasis on quality of economic development in the new era, rather than its speed.

"Shining skyscrapers and top-notch financial institutions have long been the labels of Lujiazui," said a source close to local authorities in the financial district. "However, what we really hope to build, is a green and healthy Lujiazui, where everyone who lives and works here can feel the warmth of people and can really call it home."

Editor: William Clegg

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Keywords:   Lujiazui,Smoke-Free,Workplace