What to do about underage drinking

Alcoholic beverages are widely used and enjoyed the world over. They have been served in social places in our societies over time, from the medieval times of Greek alchemists.

Yet, just as every civilisation has independently discovered, on the processes of brewing beer, fermenting wine, and distilling spirits, generations have also set certain societal standards, whether cultural or legal, to which individuals are expected to adhere.

In Kenya, drinking among the underage (those below 18 years) has become a topical issue, thanks, unfortunately, to a number of reported incidents involving underage drinking.

However, while a good deal of commentaries have hit the nail on the head, some conversations are clouding the clear thinking that ought to be adopted to address the issue at hand and the ongoing efforts by various players.

First and foremost, many teenagers are curious to dabble in alcohol consumption simply because retailers are helping this negative cause by not following duly laid-out requirements.

On their part, some parents, relatives and significant others are also exacerbating the dire situation, giving underage consumers a reason to easily access alcohol.

Related to this are underlying issues that behavioural scientists are pointing as contributing to the problem: peer pressure, increased independence, stress or sheer desire for alcohol among young people.

A recent Ipsos Synovate research revealed that 33 per cent of teenagers in Kenya consumed alcoholic beverages at home or at a relative's house while, 12 per cent of teenagers are reported drinking in public spaces or at licensed venues. Many responsible alcohol-beverage retailers are concerned that licensed outlets are selling alcohol to teenagers.

This is happening despite the Alcohol Drinks Control Act (2013) spelling out stiff penalties to individuals who sell alcohol to minors or even allow them access to areas where it is manufactured, sold or consumed.

The law also seeks to ensure the right to access information and education on health effects of alcohol abuse and access to treatment and rehabilitation programmes for those facing the detrimental effects of excessive alcohol consumption.

To be sure, this calls for collaborative response amongst all stakeholders. As this debate has raged, my approach to address menace has wandered towards the thinking of Peter Senge, an organisational behaviourist I have been following for a while now.

Basically, he argues that to understand a system, a society ought to not just focus on the system itself but the entire ecosystem - with all interplaying parts in mind. This is because, he notes, the system is embedded in a group of a larger system and that every system is made of a number of smaller, interdependent sub-systems. In our scenario, the sub-system comprises alcohol retailers, bartenders, police, alcohol distributors and manufacturers, teachers, parents amongst others. All these form a mega system - but each of these inter-related constituents have to work in rhythm for the common good.

If we have our local administration policing and such a malpractice in the public places and the parents and teachers are not doing their work in controlling or correcting delinquents, underage drinking will still thrive – and that is the ominous reality.

As Pubs, Entertainment Restaurant Association of Kenya (PERAK), we are doing our part to address the problem by conducting awareness campaigns. Working inside-out, from our bartenders to the law enforcers, we believe we are part of a long-standing solution, a part of a larger cog critical in responding to the menace.

PERAK has for the last seven months been driving an anti-underage drinking campaign dubbed Under 18 Asipewe - Si Mteja, Ni Mtoto Wako.

This elaborate campaign is already in place and over 17,000 retail staff from bars, restaurants and supermarkets across the counties have already been trained on the laws on underage drinking in Kenya.

In addition, we have held a couple of stakeholder forums since March this year, involving significant stakeholders such as Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), liquor-licensing bodies among others to address this menace. Besides, we will be rolling out a series of countrywide forums in the next few months.

As an industry, we are doing our best to help address the problem, but we call for support especially from parents and guardians. Sometime, they may feel that they have no influence on their teenagers' lives but their attitudes and behaviours have an important influence on young people.

Critical to our implementation has been the need for internal rules in our establishments. Our doorkeepers, or security personnel manning the bars and restaurants continue to ensure that every client who enters our operation is under the age of 18 and that alcoholic beverages are not sold to them.

Those with no proof of their age are politely turned away. Related to this, we have worked effortlessly to discourage adults who often bring children to these places.

We believe that these initiatives will educate and inform the entire chain in alcohol beverage retailing about the dangers of underage drinking and the general need for responsible drinking in our Kenyan society.

Yet, as we drive this campaign, our hope is that, in the long-term, the solution to this problem will be found in suspending our socio-cultural assumptions, sharing visions and best practices for the greater good of an industry is socio-economic livelihood of millions of Kenyans today.