scholarly journals Evidence on Article 5.3 of FCTC (Tobacco Industry Interference in tobacco control activities) in India- a Qualitative scoping study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonu Goel ◽  
Sitanshu Sekhar Kar ◽  
Madhur Verma ◽  
Parthibane Sivanantham ◽  
Bijay Nanda Naik
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Control Laws ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Qualitative Research Design ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Barriers And Challenges

Abstract Background: Tobacco Industry (TI) strives to portray itself as being “socially responsible” and contest for pertinent decision-making positions, which it uses to deter, delay or dilute tobacco control measures. There is little documented evidence of Tobacco Industry Interference (TII) from India, the scope of their interference and challenges faced by the experts for effective tobacco control.Methods: A cross-sectional qualitative research design, based upon in-depth interviews (N=26), was used to explore the opinion of key stakeholders regarding TII in India. The interview schedule collected information about the participant’s roles and responsibilities in tobacco control, the nature of TII faced by the participant, means of influence by TI, barriers and challenges to tobacco control efforts using a set of questions. Results: Most of the respondents were engaged in tobacco control, training, advocacy, and awareness generation activities from the last 5-10 years or more. The respondents defined the TI and its scope as per their experience with the help of power ranking methodology. Most of them perceived TI as ‘Manufacturers’ while others consider them as ‘advertisers’, ‘public relation companies’, ‘wholesalers’, ‘vendors’, and ‘Government firms having TI stocks’ as TI. We identified six major domains (Influencing the policy and administrative decisions, Interference with implementation of tobacco control laws and activities, False propaganda and hiding the truth, manipulating front action groups (FAG), Rampant tobacco advertising and promotion activities, and others) under which TII activities were classified. Most respondents were of opinion that TI players were interfering in the policy decisions, implementation of the tobacco control laws and activities, and manipulating the FAG. A detailed taxonomic classification of the TII strategies that emerged from our analysis were linked to article 5.3 of FCTC. Conclusions: The activity documented a significant level of TII in different domains with stakeholders acting at various hierarchical levels. The study provide insights about the nefarious tactics of TI, enable stakeholders to anticipate and pre-empt the kinds of alliances the TI may attempt to build, stimulate academicians and researchers to undertake in-depth analysis into various strategies and underscore the need for ensuring transparency in official interactions with the TI and their representatives.

scholarly journals Evidence on article 5.3 of FCTC (tobacco industry interference in tobacco control activities) in India- a qualitative scoping study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonu Goel ◽  
Sitanshu Sekhar Kar ◽  
Madhur Verma ◽  
Parthibane Sivanantham ◽  
Bijay Nanda Naik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Control Laws ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Qualitative Research Design ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Barriers And Challenges

Abstract Background The Tobacco Industry (henceforth TI) yearns to portray itself as being “socially responsible” and fights for the decision-making positions; that are it used to deter, delay or dilute tobacco control measures. There is little documented evidence of Tobacco Industry Interference (henceforth TII) from India, the scope of their interference and challenges faced by the experts for effective tobacco control. This research study seeks to cover this significant gap in the literature on the TI of India. Methods A cross-sectional qualitative research design, based upon in-depth interviews (N = 26), was used to explore the key stakeholders’ opinions regarding TII in India. The interviews used a set of questions to collect information about the participant’s roles and responsibilities in tobacco control, the nature of TII faced by the participants, means of influence by TI, barriers and challenges to tobacco control efforts. Results Most of the respondents were engaged in tobacco control, training, advocacy and awareness generation activities for 5–10 years or more. The respondents defined the TI and its scope as per their experience with the help of the power ranking methodology. Most of them perceived TI as ‘manufacturers’ while others consider them as ‘advertisers’, ‘public relation companies’, ‘wholesalers’, ‘vendors’, and ‘Government firms with TI stocks. The research team identified six significant domains: influencing the policy and administrative decisions, Interference in the implementation of tobacco control laws and activities, false propaganda and hiding the truth, manipulating front action groups (FAG), rampant tobacco advertising and promotion activities and others under which TII activities were classified. Most respondents believed that TI players were interfering in the policy decisions, implementing the tobacco control laws and activities and manipulating the FAG. A detailed taxonomic classification of the TII strategies that emerged from our analysis was linked to article 5.3 of FCTC. Conclusions The study documented a significant level of TII in different domains, with stakeholders acting at various hierarchical levels. Thus providing insight into the tactics of the TI in order to enable stakeholders to anticipate and pre-empt the kinds of alliances the TI may attempt to build; stimulating academicians and researchers to undertake in-depth analysis into various strategies and therefore underscoring the need to ensuring transparency in official interaction with the TI and its representatives.

scholarly journals Evidence on Article 5.3 of FCTC (Tobacco Industry Interference in Tobacco Control Activities) in India - A Qualitative Scoping Study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonu Goel ◽  
Sitanshu Sekhar Kar ◽  
Madhur Verma ◽  
Parthibane Sivanantham ◽  
Bijay Nanda Naik
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Study Participant ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Control Laws ◽  
Qualitative Research Design ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Barriers And Challenges

Abstract Background: Tobacco Industry (TI) strives to portray itself as being “socially responsible” and contest for pertinent decision-making positions, which it uses to deter, delay or dilute tobacco control measures. There is little documented evidence of Tobacco Industry Interference (TII) from India, the scope of their interference and challenges faced by the experts for effective tobacco control.Methods: A cross-sectional qualitative research design, based upon in-depth interviews (N=26), was used to explore the opinion of key stakeholders regarding TII in India. The interview schedule collected information about the socio-demographic information of the study participant, the participant’s roles and responsibilities in tobacco control, the nature of TII faced by the participant, means of influence by TI, barriers and challenges to tobacco control efforts using a set of questions. Principles of the ‘grounded theory’ were used to understand beliefs and thoughts of key-experts about TII in India, its interactions and interference at various levels. Results: Most of the respondents were engaged in tobacco control, training, advocacy, and awareness generation activities from the last 5-10 years or more. The respondents defined the TI and its scope as per their experience. We identified six major domains (Influencing the policy and administrative decisions, Interference with implementation of tobacco control laws and activities, False propaganda and hiding the truth, manipulating front action groups, Rampant tobacco advertising and promotion activities, and others) under which TII activities can be classified comprehensively. Conclusions: The activity documented a significant level of TII in different domains with stakeholders acting at various hierarchical levels. This can help to provide insights about the nefarious tactics of TI, enable stakeholders to anticipate and pre-empt the kinds of alliances the TI may attempt to build, stimulate academicians and researchers to undertake in-depth analysis into various strategies and underscore the need for ensuring transparency in official interactions with the TI and their representatives.

scholarly journals Impact of the WHO FCTC on tobacco control: perspectives from stakeholders in 12 countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (Suppl 2) ◽  
pp. s129-s135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorraine Craig ◽  
Geoffrey T Fong ◽  
Janet Chung-Hall ◽  
Pekka Puska
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Stakeholder Perspectives ◽  
Independent Expert ◽  
Development Levels ◽  
The Impact

BackgroundThe WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), the first WHO treaty, entered into force in 2005. In April 2015, a seven-member independent expert group (EG) was established by a decision of the FCTC Conference of the Parties to assess the impact of the Treaty in its first decade.One component of the EG’s methodology was to gather evidence on WHO FCTC impact from Parties themselves. This paper presents findings from 12 country missions on how the FCTC impacted progress on tobacco control.MethodsBetween November 2015 and May 2016, EG members conducted missions in 12 countries representing each of the six WHO regions and the four World Bank economic development levels. In each country, the EG interviewed a broad range of stakeholders to assess the extent to which the FCTC had contributed to tobacco control. The primary objective was to assess whether tobacco control measures would have been developed or passed, or implemented at all, or as quickly, if there had been no FCTC. Through this counterfactual inquiry, the EG sought to determine the FCTC’s causal role.ConclusionThe FCTC was reported to have made contributions along the entire policy/regulation process: the development of a measure, building legislative and political support for a measure and its implementation. These stakeholder perspectives support the conclusion that the FCTC has played a pivotal role in accelerating and strengthening the implementation of tobacco control measures, although tobacco industry interference continues to be a significant obstacle to further advancement.

scholarly journals Compliance of Oral Snuff (Naswar) Packaging and Sales Practices with National Tobacco Control Laws and the Relevant Articles of Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. 2224-2230
Author(s):  
Fayaz Ahmad ◽  
Zohaib Khan ◽  
Kamran Siddiqi ◽  
Muhammad Naseem Khan ◽  
Melanie Boeckman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Statistical Tests ◽  
Sampling Strategy ◽  
General Point ◽  
Cluster Sampling ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Control Laws ◽  
Potential Implication ◽  
Health Warning ◽  
Almost All

Abstract Introduction Smokeless tobacco (SLT) is a significant contributor to tobacco-related harm in Pakistan but its control has lags behind that of combustible tobacco. We assessed the compliance of Naswar’s (a widely used SLT product in the Southeast Asia) packaging and sales practices with the national legislations and relevant articles of the WHO framework convention on tobacco control (FCTC). Aims and Methods A cross-sectional observational audit was conducted in three districts of Pakistan. We recruited 286 general point of sale (GPOS) and exclusive Naswar sellers (ENS) through a multistage cluster sampling strategy. Data were gathered on packaging and labeling practices of Naswar and advertisement and promotion practices inside and outside the shops. Statistical tests for association between the dependent variable-advertisement practices, and independent variables-area and vendor types were conducted. Results We analyzed 133 and 49 unique Naswar products sold in 229 GPOS and by 57 ENS, respectively. None of the local products had any written or pictorial health warning. More than half of retailers used one or two methods of advertising Naswar inside the shops while only 9% advertised outside the shops. ENS were more likely to be noncompliant with tobacco advertisement and promotion compared with GPOS. Conclusions The study presents first insights on the compliance of Naswar packaging and sale practices with local regulations and WHO FCTC provisions in Pakistan. Almost all products were on display in the shops and none of the local products had any health warning or contents disclosure on the packages. Implications Naswar is a form of SLT used extensively in Pakistan, Central Asia, and Pashtun populations across the globe. This study provides an important insight into the Naswar retail environment in a geographical setting where the use of Naswar is endemic. The study brings to fore previously unreported issues like an urban–rural disparity, and differences between exclusive and nonENS, with regards to Naswar advertisement and promotion. These findings have potential implication on the implementation of tobacco control retail policies. The lack of health warnings and free display of Naswar brands call for alignment of tobacco control efforts with the FCTC.

Tobacco control strategies in psychiatric services in catalonia (Spain)

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 45-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Ballbè ◽  
G. Nieva ◽  
S. Mondon ◽  
C. Pinet ◽  
E. Bruguera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Smoking Cessation ◽  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Psychiatric Inpatient ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Psychiatric Services ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Mortality And Morbidity

IntroductionMortality and morbidity due to smoking in people with mental illnesses are higher than in the general population. However, smoking continues to be allowed in psychiatric premises of many countries despite being prohibited in workplaces including health care services.ObjectiveTo describe tobacco control strategies undertaken in psychiatric inpatient services and day centers in Catalonia.AimsTo study tobacco control strategies in psychiatric services in order to identify unmet needs.MethodsA cross-sectional study including all psychiatric services offering public service in Catalonia (n = 192). The managers answered an on-line questionnaire with 24 items grouped in four dimensions: staff's training & commitment, clinical intervention, management of smoking areas, and communication of smoke-free policies.Results186 of the managers (96.9%) responded to the questionnaire. Results showed low levels of implementation of tobacco control strategies, especially in the training and intervention dimensions. 41.0% of the services usually intervened in their patients’ tobacco use but an overall 65.9% didn’t have pharmacotherapy for smoking cessation available. 47.3% of the managers stated that their staff had not enough knowledge on smoking cessation interventions. 38.9% of the services had smoking indoor areas. Day Centers showed the lowest implementation of tobacco control measures while services belonging to the Network of Smoke-free Hospitals showed the highest implementation.ConclusionsCurrent Spanish partial law has failed to promote a desirable tobacco control in psychiatric services. There is a need to extend tobacco control policies, specifically in terms of smoking intervention and training, together with a higher availability of resources.

The taste of smoke: tobacco industry strategies to prevent the prohibition of additives in tobacco products in Brazil

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (e2) ◽  
pp. e92-e101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andre Luiz Oliveira da Silva ◽  
Stella Aguinaga Bialous ◽  
Patrícia Gonçalves Duarte Albertassi ◽  
Daniela Aparecida dos Reis Arquete ◽  
Ana Marcia Messeder Sebrao Fernandes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Scientific Basis ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Tobacco Products ◽  
Political Interference ◽  
The World ◽  
Legislative Activity ◽  
Smoke Tobacco

BackgroundThe tobacco industry (TI) uses several strategies to attract new consumers, including using additives in tobacco products, which makes tobacco especially attractive to youth. Based on scientific evidence and the principles of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA, for the name in Portuguese), published the Collegiate Board Resolution (RDC, for the name in Portuguese) 14/2012 in 2012, prohibiting the addition of substances that enhance the flavour and taste of tobacco products in order to make them more attractive. In response, the TI used various strategies to prevent RDC 14/2012 from entering into force. At the time, the Brazilian additive ban was the most comprehensive in the world as it included a ban on menthol.ObjectivesThis paper analyses the arguments and strategies used by the TI to prevent the implementation of the additives ban.MethodsReview of published articles, reports, legislation and legislative activity, internal TI documents, media stories and other documents to describe TI’s reaction to the ban.ResultsThe results show that the TI used some well-known strategies to delay or cancel the entering into force of the resolution. For example, the TI attempted political interference, used litigation and commissioned studies with findings that questioned the resolution’s rationale. The TI strategies used in Brazil are similar to those used at the global level to oppose other tobacco control measures.ConclusionsTI successfully delayed the most comprehensive additive ban in the world using its usual tactics, despite the fact that none of the arguments presented by the TI had an acceptable scientific basis or evidence.

scholarly journals Decrease in cross-border tobacco purchases despite intensification of antitobacco policies in France

2020 ◽  
pp. tobaccocontrol-2019-055540
Author(s):  
Ramchandar Gomajee ◽  
Hugo Torregrossa ◽  
Camille Bolze ◽  
Maria Melchior ◽  
Fabienne El-Khoury Lesueur
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Tobacco Product ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Multivariable Logistic Regression Model ◽  
Product Price ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Plain Packaging ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Tobacco Control Policies

BackgroundRecently, France has intensified tobacco control policies which included gradual increase in tobacco product price and the introduction of plain packaging. However, there has been suggestion that cross-border tobacco purchases from neighbouring countries, with lower tobacco prices, will increase. We examine trends in cross-border tobacco purchases among smokers concurrent with the implementation of tobacco control measures between 2016 and 2017.MethodsDescription des Perceptions, Images, et Comportements liés au Tabagisme is a two-wave cross-sectional national telephone survey of French adults aged 18–64 years, which recruited a total of 2167 smokers (2016: n=1238; 2017: n=929). Data were weighted to be representative of the French adult population. The association between study wave and cross-country tobacco purchases was examined across study waves using a multivariable logistic regression model (adjusted ORs: ORa (95% CI)).ResultsLess than half (38.5%) of smokers declared cross-border tobacco purchases in the last year, which were mostly done on occasional basis: 22.6% purchased tobacco cross-border once or twice yearly. In 2017, as compared with 2016, cross-border tobacco purchases by French smokers decreased (ORa=0.81, 95% CI 0.68 to 0.98). Other factors associated with cross-border tobacco purchases included sex, and driving distance to a border.ConclusionIn France, the increase in tobacco product price and the introduction of plain packaging did not contribute to increasing rates of out-of-country purchases of tobacco products, probably due to the overall decrease in smoking levels. However, a harmonisation of tobacco product prices and plain packaging policies across Europe might further improve tobacco control throughout the continent.

scholarly journals Tobacco Control Litigation: Broader Impacts on Health Rights Adjudication

2013 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar A. Cabrera ◽  
Juan Carballo
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Control ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
Smoking Prevalence ◽  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Public Places ◽  
Tobacco Taxes ◽  
Broader Impacts ◽  
The Right ◽  
Health Rights

There is perhaps no area of law that so effectively protects human health and thereby advances the right to the highest attainable standard of health, as tobacco control. Globally, tobacco is responsible for 1 in 10 adult deaths, and is on track to kill 10 million people per year, mostly in developing countries, representing a US$200 billion drain on the global economy. Yet experience in recent decades has shown that a range of tobacco control measures, such as comprehensive bans on smoking in public places, tobacco taxes, and limits on tobacco advertising, can greatly reduce smoking prevalence. These measures have slowly curtailed the epidemic, despite strong opposition from various sectors led by the tobacco industry. It is fitting that tobacco control is the focus of a recent, widely ratified global treaty (the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control) and of increasing national litigation, often directly linked to countries’ human rights commitments.

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