Across Europe, we are working together with diverse groups from the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors to reduce harmful drinking and promote responsible consumption. Spain is offering a good example of such a partnership approach to reduce underage drinking.
“Menores ni una gota” campaign (“Minors, not a single drop”) was launch in 2013 by FEBE (spirits producers trade association) with the support of the Health Ministry. The aim of the campaign is to inform and raise awareness of the risks related to premature consumption in order to delay the age of the onset of drinking; increase understanding of the risks to physical and mental health development of pupils and change the perception around underage drinking to make it socially unacceptable. A number of actors, including public administration at local level, have engaged over the years to pass on the message, with a particular focus on parents. A “Super Nanny”, Rocio Ramos Paul, is touring the country to support parents in setting clearer rules for their kids and stick to them. Since January, six workshops have been organised with 760 families. About 2,000 guides for parents have been downloaded from the website since the beginning of the year.
This year, new partners joined the effort, so that more people that can play a role in discouraging underage drinking. An agreement was signed with Grupo Dia (a Spanish retail chain) to train the 20,000 employees and those in the 1,200 franchised stores why not and how to refuse selling of alcohol to underage people. Grupo Dia is a sponsor of basketball teams locally and committed to reach out to the 12-17 years old players with interactive workshops to understand why they should not be drinking. Similar workshops are organised with grand-parents as prevention actors to their grand-child.
Another partnership agreement was signed with the Spanish College of Pharmacists. 250,000 posters and flyers have been spread to 22,000 pharmacies with a guide & access to a web-training session on how to interact with children and parents on the zero-tolerance message for minors. Overall, this campaign is a success because it is building on a committed and diverse communities of partners working at local level close to the target group.
We are confident that efforts can go much further if we share knowledge and experience. We collectively need to ensure better enforcement and contribute to changing social norms for the better.
