21 - 27 October is International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week - a call to action for individuals, civil society organizations, industry and governments to work together to ban lead paint.
In celebrating the International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week of Action (ILPPWA), Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) and other institutions had been urged to enforce standards on lead in paint to protect children.
As Miremba enters her classroom in the morning, little does she know that the walls of the one place that should help her secure a better future are, in fact, poisoning it. As she playfully chips the hallway paint before going into class, she exposes herself, and her fellow schoolmates, to the irreversible toxic effects of lead.
Experts yesterday called for urgent formation of regulations to ban lead content in household paints. The call came at a workshop organised by the Environment and Social Development Organization (ESDO) at its Mohammadpur headquarters.