The Awarding Ceremony for the National Anti-Tobacco ‘Fresque Murale’ Inter-College Competition took place on 30 September 2019 at the R. Gandhi Science Centre, Bell Village in the presence of the high officials from the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life, Ministry of Education and Human Resources, Tertiary Education and Scientific Research and WHO Representative in Mauritius, Dr Laurent Musango.
Dr Bhoshun Ori, Director Health Services during his welcome address recalled that the National Anti-Tobacco Mural Painting Inter-Collage Competition was organized in June 2019 in the context of the World No-Tobacco Day 2019. The aim of the competition was to deter the very first puff among young school youth. A total of twenty-two private and public secondary schools registered for the competition. Students in group of 5 to 8, led by their respective teachers, conceptualized mural painting at their respective schools according to the technical guidelines set. A panel of juries comprising technical officers from the ministries of Health and Education, chaired by Dr Ori, Director Health Services, reviewed and assessed the entries based on well-defined criteria which include creativity, relevance and presentation among others.
Dr Laurent Musango, WHO Representative in Mauritius, during his speech, congratulated all the students who participated in the competition. ‘You are winners in this competition’, he told the students present. During the competition, you have sensitized your peers and everyone at schools on the harmful effects of smoking. ‘Young people underestimate the likelihood of becoming addicted to nicotine when they first tried to smoke’, emphasized Dr Musango.
