8 MAY 2018 | NAY PYI TAW – Myanmar has been selected as one of 15 countries worldwide to receive dedicated international support from the United Nations through the “FCTC 2030 project” to accelerate implementation of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). The project aligns with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes explicit attention to tobacco control.
In welcoming the project to Myanmar, the Union Minister of Health and Sports, His Excellency Dr Myint Htwe said, “Myanmar is committed to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and is looking forward to this new support to strengthen tobacco control policies and discourage tobacco use. Myanmar has a ban on smoking in some public places and has mandated 75% pictorial health warnings on tobacco packaging. There is still more we can do to protect the Myanmar people from the harms and impoverishment brought about by the addiction to tobacco.”
The WHO FCTC is the world’s only global health treaty, which today counts 180 countries and the European Union as Parties. It is dedicated to ending the global tobacco epidemic and is a comprehensive blueprint for governments to reduce tobacco use and related harms in their countries.
Tobacco use harms our health and leads to many life-threatening and debilitating diseases including cancer, heart and lung diseases. It is one of the world’s leading causes of early and preventable death.
Tobacco is also a development issue. It causes many social, economic and environmental problems which impede national development. These include reduced economic growth from an unhealthier workforce, impoverishment of families from medical costs and loss of households’ primary earners, and irreversible damage to land and water from tobacco growing.
Tobacco control efforts in Myanmar have a solid foundation to build upon. Since ratification of the WHO FCTC in 2004, the Government has signed into law the Control of Smoking and Consumption of Tobacco Product Law in 2006, the Order Stipulating the Requirements to be Managed at the Specific Area where Smoking is Allowed in 2014, the Order Stipulating the Caption, Sign and Marks Referring to the “No-Smoking Area” in 2014, and the Order of Printing Warning Images and Texts on the Packaging of Tobacco Products in 2016. These key pieces of legislation regulate smoke-free public areas and workplaces, advertising, promotion and sponsorship and pictorial health warnings.
“Myanmar was one of the world’s first countries to ratify the WHO FCTC. There is a good legal framework to regulate smoke-free areas, pictorial health warnings, tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. Substantial efforts are made – and are needed across different sectors – to inform the public of the harms of tobacco use. At the same time, more can be done to protect people, especially the young, from the commercial interests of tobacco companies -- and from the harmful impact of tobacco use, betel chewing and exposure to second-hand smoke.” said Dr Stephan Paul Jost, WHO Representative to Myanmar.
With Myanmar’s government having expressed a strong commitment to Universal Health Coverage, UN support on tobacco control is timely. Tobacco control will not only improve life expectancy in Myanmar but also lessen strains on the country’s health system and help families avoid catastrophic health expenditures. Myanmar’s National Health Plan 2017-2021 aims to reduce out-of-pocket spending on health and to address impoverishment.
Mr Knut Ostby, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative, added, “Tobacco use affects the well-being of families and communities all over Myanmar. Its consequences hamper poverty alleviation, degrades the environment and, ultimately, reverse development progress. The Sustainable Development Goals include a specific target on strengthening implementation of the WHO FCTC, recognizing that tobacco effects are incompatible with development progress. The UN looks forward to supporting Myanmar to implement the WHO FCTC as part of its sustainable development plans.”
The FCTC 2030 project catalyzes initial country action to achieve the 2030 Agenda’s targets on health and sustainable development broadly. It will run for five years until 2021 and will bring international support to Myanmar from the United Nations, including the Secretariat of the WHO FCTC, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and WHO. The support includes expert advice, technical assistance and peer support to strengthen the Government of Myanmar’s programme of work on tobacco control. The Governments of the United Kingdom and Australia have generously provided funds for the FCTC 2030 project.
Mr Andrew Black, visiting Myanmar this week from the Secretariat of the WHO FCTC said “All governments that have ratified the WHO FCTC have committed to implementing comprehensive tobacco control policies in the interest of public health. Through the FCTC 2030 project, Myanmar will get dedicated support to strengthen public health by protecting people from the harms of tobacco”.
Contact: mediafctc@who.int