The University of Cape Town (UCT) and the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) have launched a major five-year research initiative aimed at uncovering the political, economic and social factors driving harmful alcohol use in South Africa and Botswana.
The multidisciplinary project - titled Collaboration for Harm Reduction and Alcohol Safety in the Environment in Southern Africa (CHASE-SA),seeks to generate evidence that will guide the development of effective policies and community-based interventions to reduce alcohol-related harm.
CHASE-SA is co-led by UCT’s Division of Public Health Medicine in the School of Public Health and the SAMRC, in partnership with the University of Botswana, the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) and civil society organisations including the Southern Africa Alcohol Policy Alliance.
South Africa has some of the world’s highest rates of heavy episodic drinking, with alcohol contributing an estimated 7% of the national disease burden.
Harmful alcohol use is linked to gender-based violence, trauma injuries, and increased HIV and tuberculosis risks. The Western Cape also records some of the highest global rates of foetal alcohol spectrum disorders.
The project will explore how political, commercial, environmental and cultural factors influence harmful drinking, especially in historically disadvantaged communities.
Project lead Professor Richard Matzopoulos, honorary professor at UCT and head of the SAMRC’s Burden of Disease Research Unit, said the study is the first of its scale in the region.
“This is the first large-scale study in southern Africa to map the entire alcohol environment, from industry supply chains to community-level drinking norms, and link these to health and social outcomes,” he said.
“We want to understand not just who drinks and how much, but why harmful drinking is so entrenched, and what levers exist for change.”
The CHASE-SA programme will be carried out across four major work streams:
• Political economy: examining alcohol policies, regulation and industry influence.
• Acquisition and consumption environments: mapping how alcohol is accessed and consumed across six sites in South Africa and three in Botswana.
• Health and economic impacts: analysing links between drinking patterns and health, social and economic outcomes through surveys, modelling and secondary data.
• Evidence to action: working with policymakers, civil society and communities to co-create policy and intervention strategies.
Researchers say harmful alcohol use is shaped not only by individual behaviour but also by marketing strategies, living environments and regulatory frameworks.
As consumption declines in high-income countries, global alcohol producers are increasingly targeting low- and middle-income regions, intensifying the public health burden.
Matzopoulos noted that South Africa’s Covid-19 alcohol sales bans demonstrated how quickly alcohol-related harm can decrease, including sharp reductions in trauma cases.
“It prompted an industry backlash but alerted the public to the extent of alcohol-associated risks. This has provided rare impetus for considering better alcohol policy,” he said.
The project emphasises the importance of collaboration between researchers, communities, and government.
“Evidence alone does not change policy, but evidence co-created with communities and decision-makers can,” Matzopoulos added.
“Our goal is to build the evidence base and the coalitions needed to reduce alcohol-related harm and strengthen public health.”
Saturday Star
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