[RESULTS] Male gender ( aOR = 2.05 , 95 % CI = 1.23-3 .39 ) , poor academic achievement ( aOR 1.60 , 95 % CI 1.05-2 .44 ) , ever-smoker ( aOR 2.17 , 95 % CI 1.37-3 .44 ) and having a smoking friend ( aOR 1.76 , 95 % CI 1.10-2 .83 ) were associated with susceptibility to smoking , while having the perception that smoking prohibition in school was strictly enforced ( aOR 0.55 , 95 % CI 0.32-0 .94 ) , and had never seen friends smoking in a school compound ( aOR 0.59 , 95 % CI 0.37-0 .96 ) were considered protective factors