Conference of the Parties on Tobacco Control: Decisions on the Environment, Advertising and Human Rights

The 10^th The Conference of the Parties (COP10) of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control concluded on 10 February 2024 with several major decisions. The article on environmental protection is strengthened and better integrates the issue of plastic cigarette filters. The guidelines on cross-border advertising, promotion and sponsorship are also strengthened, and the link with the subject of human rights is underlined. The "fundamental and irreconcilable" conflict with the tobacco industry is reaffirmed.

Despite the tobacco industry's attempts at diversion, the work of the 10^th Conference of the Parties (COP10) of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) were successfully completed. 142 parties met in Panama City from 5 to 10 February 2024 to take part in this COP10. Convened every two years, the COP ensures the implementation, effectiveness and adaptation of the FCTC.

With the protection of children from tobacco industry interference being the theme of the next World No Tobacco Day on 31 May 2024, many youth delegations were welcomed during this COP10.

Significant progress in the fight against tobacco

Several decisions taken during COP10 represent significant advances in tobacco control[1] :

• Article 18, which aims to protect the environment from the consequences of the production, consumption and disposal of tobacco products, is strengthened. Plastic filters in cigarettes should be better taken into account, and should soon be included in the international treaty on plastic pollution.
• The more precise inclusion of the phenomenon of promotional advertising and cross-border sponsorship, which have developed significantly in recent years as a result of the development of new technologies, complements the guidelines for the implementation of Article 13. The issue of the representation of smoking in films and the media is particularly taken into account.
• Article 2.1, which allows parties to adopt complementary anti-smoking measures going beyond the provisions of the treaty, is integrated into the strategies for reducing smoking; an expert group is set up for this purpose.
• Article 19, which concerns the criminal and civil liability of tobacco manufacturers, will also be the subject of work and recommendations by a group of experts in support of the Parties.
• The Panama Declaration recalls that there is a fundamental and irreconcilable conflict between the interests of the tobacco industry and public health objectives. It reaffirms the need for strict implementation of Article 5.3, which requires that public policies be free from tobacco industry interference.
• The Global Strategy to Accelerate Tobacco Control 2019-2025 is renewed for five years. It can thus be aligned with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
• Parties are encouraged to include their progress on tobacco control in their reports on the implementation of the human rights conventions they have ratified, in order to highlight the link between these two themes.[2].
• The reports of the Parties to the treaty, which address the progress of tobacco control in each country, will be adapted for greater effectiveness.
• The FCTC Investment Fund has also been strengthened.

Tobacco industry interference attempts

The tobacco industry failed to block decisions at this COP session as it had hoped on the subject of its new products, promoted as reduced risk.[3]The debates around these new products were postponed to COP11.

For several months, tobacco multinationals and their allies have been preparing a vast offensive against the World Health Organization (WHO) to neutralize the COP10 of the FCTC.[4]. Repeated requests from industry to be considered as interlocutors were once again rejected. Many events organized by industry were held around COP10, denouncing its lack of transparency.[5].

The tobacco industry's insistence is explained by the progress made over the past twenty years in the fight against tobacco. The implementation of the provisions contained in the FCTC has in fact contributed to reducing significantly global tobacco consumption, as reported by the WHO in January 2024[6].

Keywords: Conference of the Parties, Framework Convention, WHO, Panama, Protocol against Illicit Trade, Article 5.3, Tobacco Industry

©Tobacco Free Generation

M.F.

[1] The tenth session of the Conference of the Parties adopted historic decisions to protect the environment from the harmful effects of tobacco and to address cross-border advertising, promotion and sponsorship, FCTC, published February 10, 2024, accessed February 13, 2024.

[2] Global progress achieved at WHO tobacco treaty negotiations in Panama, ASH-USA, published February 12, 2024, accessed February 13, 2024.

[3] Addressing global progress in implementation of the WHO FCTC at COP10, World Heart Federation, published February 12, 2024, accessed February 13, 2024.

[4] Interference around COP 10 & MOP 3, Tobacco Tactics, updated January 24, 2024, accessed February 13, 2024.

[5] WHO FCTC Conference of Parties Adopts New Decision on Curbing Tobacco's Environmental Impacts, but Sidesteps E-Cigarettes, Health Policy Watch, published February 12, 2024, accessed February 13, 2024.

[6] WHO, WHO global report on trends in prevalence of tobacco use 2000–2030, report, January 2024, 135 p.