A British tobacco giant is breaking its own marketing code covering the sale of cigarettes to young people in Africa.

An investigation for the BBC has found evidence in Nigeria, Malawi and Mauritius of rules being broken.

In particular, BBC Two’s This World found single cigarettes - which campaigners say are attractive to young people - were being promoted and sold.

The company involved, British American Tobacco (BAT), says it does not encourage the sale of single "sticks".

During the investigation carried out for BBC Two’s This World programme, British businessman Duncan Bannatyne also discovers tactics used by BAT which circumvent bans on advertising and raise the profile of cigarettes in countries where doctors are warning of a potential epidemic of smoking-related diseases.

In Malawi, the programme found evidence of the London-based tobacco firm providing sponsorship for a music event, which was held at a venue that had no formal age checks on the door.

This breaks BAT’s own marketing code.

Chris Proctor, head of science and Regulation at BAT, told the programme that: "If that was the case, that is disappointing, it’s certainly not what we would wish to happen."

Celebrities had also appeared at the music event wearing Embassy and Pall Mall branded goods.