The fight against smoking is moving to a new stage this week when the World Health Organisation launches negotiations for an international framework convention on tobacco control. The World Health Assembly, now meeting in Geneva, is expected to pass a resolution establishing a negotiating body and a working group under the WHO to produce a convention by the year 2003. And it would also be the first time the WHO is initiating an international convention on a health problem. In this it has lagged behind the UN Environment Programme which has sponsored many environmental agreements. In particular, it does not sufficiently deal with curbing the international trade in tobacco.
Smoking is one of the most important causes of preventable deaths in the world.
Its dangers are well known and governments pay at least lip service to curbing it. Ironically, however, the overall rate of smoking is escalating and so too is the numbers of deaths. In 1998, at least 3.5 million people died from tobacco use. If the pandemic is not controlled, the figure is expected to rise to 10 million by 2030 and of this seven million deaths will be in developing countries. Under the convention, countries will take coordinated actions to meet its aims.