New study sheds light on African alcohol industry activity

The Norwegian Oil Fund is investing in alcohol companies that market their products to people in sub-Saharan Africa in ways not permitted in Norway, a new study led by the University of Stirling has found.

It is anticipated that the findings may spark a debate about whether such investments are ethical.

The ‘Oil Fund’ is officially known as the Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global. It was set up in 1990 to manage revenue from the country’s oil and gas resources, and is worth approximately 1.4 trillion dollars, making it the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world.

Norway has a complete ban on alcohol advertising, including sports sponsorship. It also has strict regulations on taxation and availability. These are in place to protect the country’s health, particularly young people.

Yet, the researchers found that the Oil Fund has invested billions of dollars in alcohol companies that sponsor sport and cultural events; offer food and health-related donations and promotions; and deliver education and entrepreneurship-related competitions which appear to be aimed at young people. These are known as ‘corporate social responsibility’ activities.

There is no evidence that these activities reduce alcohol harms, and the findings echo previous studies that find such activity in low- and middle-income countries is targeted towards young people and their parents.

Research spanned six countries

The study, led by the University of Stirling’s Dr Gemma Mitchell, was commissioned by Norwegian non-governmental organisation FORUT, which was set up to safeguard children. FORUT released the findings in a report published today. 

Research by the Stirling team, which included Dr Richard Purves, Dr Isabelle Uny and Professor Niamh Fitzgerald, found 61 examples of alcohol industry corporate social responsibility and marketing activity, across six African countries – Burundi, Ghana, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Dr Gemma Mitchell, of the Institute for Social Marketing in the Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport, said: “The 61 examples of corporate social responsibility activity are a snapshot of what is happening in just six countries on the continent.

“We hope the findings from this productive collaboration with colleagues in sub-Saharan Africa will inform further conversations about whether investments in alcohol companies by the Oil Fund are ethical.”

Informed policy discussions needed

A separate case study by Dr Purves and Dr Mitchell, and Ms Vento Ogora Auma and Professor Nazarius Mbona Tumwesigye from Makerere University, found widespread and multi-faceted alcohol sponsorship in Ugandan professional sports by companies that the Oil Fund has invested in, including football, basketball, and golf. This included social media marketing, branded strips, limited edition products, venue advertising, and alcohol industry representation in event media coverage.

Lead author, Dr Richard Purves, said: “These findings indicate that alcohol companies use sports sponsorship to position themselves as central to the Ugandan economy, culture, and sporting heritage, and underscores the need for informed policy discussions on alcohol marketing and its impact on sports and society.”

“Industry sports sponsorship, if not checked, may increase young people and other vulnerable populations' exposure to alcohol marketing.”

Evidence of conflict of interest

Delayed South African legislation was also the subject of scrutiny by Dr Mitchell and a team of academics (Prof Susan Goldstein, SAMRC /WITS Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science - PRICELESS) and advocates (Ms Pfumelani Siwela and Mrs Aadielah Maker Diedericks, Southern African Alcohol Policy Alliance) in South Africa.

The Draft Liquor Amendment Bill (2016) proposed new restrictions on alcohol to protect public health, including on advertising, increasing age of purchase to 21 years, and a 500m no trading radius around educational and religious institutions, but it has not yet progressed through parliament.

Using Freedom of Information Requests to the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC) – a statutory body, the team found activity by 14 alcohol industry organisations about the Bill between 2016 and 2022. This included reviewing the Bill and making suggestions for alternative measures such as self-regulation, which would not be permitted in Norway.

The authors of the South Africa case study note that, during the Covid-19 pandemic, alcohol companies used a combination of legal threats and financial donations to the government to push for industry self-regulation (where companies monitor their own adherence to standards, which is known to be ineffective at reducing alcohol harms) instead of evidence-informed legislation. In at least one case, they even threatened to withdraw donations.

Furthermore, community representation was far lower than industry representation in this forum, and industry representatives repeatedly made requests for, and paid for, social and economic assessments, which delayed progress of the Bill. This was despite the South African government already having completed a social and economic assessment.

Aadielah Maker-Diedericks from SAAPA said: “The study provides clear evidence of conflict of interest in the role of the industry in policy discussions in South Africa.”

Activity mirrors industry playbook

Dr Mitchell added: “Our overall findings show the central role alcohol companies play in the economic, social, and political life of these six African countries. Much of the activity mirrors the industry playbook used by other health-harming industries to prevent effective health policies being implemented, including tobacco. There is no evidence that the activities we identified will reduce alcohol harms, but there is evidence that they will help the alcohol industry promote their commercial interests on the continent.

“We urgently need more country-specific evidence that policymakers and others can use when deciding how best to address alcohol harms on the continent.”

FORUT Secretary General Ida Oleanna Hagen said: “Norway has a leading role in global health. It is far from coherent that our pension fund invests in commodities that severely impacts countries and populations while we simultaneously as a donor spend money on aid to address the same problem.

“Alcohol policies should protect public health, not the industries. The aggressive and unethical behaviour of the global alcohol industry is not in line with Norwegian policy, neither with WHO recommendations.”