Bahrain: enforcing bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship
Context Bahrain became a party to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) on 20 March 2007. The passing of Royal Decree No. 8 of 2009 marked a significant step forward in tobacco control efforts in the country, introducing the first comprehensive tobacco control law in the Kingdom. In line with Article 13 of the WHO FCTC, Bahrain...
Bahrain: warning about the dangers of tobacco
Context Bahrain ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) on 20 March 2007. To enhance tobacco control efforts, the issuance of Royal Decree No. 8 of 2009 played a pivotal role as the first comprehensive tobacco control law in the Kingdom. In line with Article 11 of the WHO FCTC, Bahrain implemented a crucial measure...
Egypt: monitoring tobacco use and prevention policies
Context Egypt ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) on 25 February 2005. However, Egypt had already initiated national surveys as early as 2000, as part of the Global Tobacco Surveillance System, to assess the prevalence of tobacco use at a national level and develop suitable interventions. In 2007, Egypt emerged as one of...
Afghanistan: enforcing bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship
Context In 2007, Afghanistan implemented its initial legislation to address tobacco advertising and promotion. According to Article 16 of the Afghan Advertisement Procedure, all forms of tobacco product promotion, advertisement and other harmful products were fully prohibited on national TV, radio and magazines. However, this legislation did not...
Afghanistan: protecting people from tobacco smoke
Context In 2007, Afghanistan introduced its first legislation aimed at protecting individuals from tobacco smoke. However, this initial legislation had certain limitations. Article 4 did not encompass all public spaces, including government facilities, indoor private offices and workplaces, restaurants and cafes, and public transportation....
Healthy FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™
3 November 2022 | In 2002, the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean teamed up with former footballer Mahmoud El Khatib from Egypt and former cricketer Imran Khan from Pakistan on the Tobacco-free sports: Towards a tobacco-free generation campaign. The key messages of this campaign were: Tobacco and sports do not mix. Ban tobacco...
New and emerging nicotine and tobacco products pose challenges for tobacco control
12 October 2022 | Cairo – Vaping is a gateway to smoking. Data show that people who vape are five times more likely to become regular cigarette smokers, a habit that claims a life every four seconds. The tobacco industry is using new strategies to fuel its multi-billion-dollar turnover. It is flooding markets around the world with new and...
Tobacco is poisoning our planet #TobaccoExposed
WHO and UNEP work jointly to put an end to tobacco’s harmful impact on our environment 31 May 2022 | On this World No Tobacco Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) are calling on governments and individuals to put an end to tobacco growing,...
WHO and Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control launch new report on tobacco industry interference in the Region
Increased action needed to better implement Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC and its guidelines to stop tobacco industry interference and reduce tobacco use 21 February 2022 | The tobacco industry exploited the COVID-19 pandemic to expand its market for cigarettes as well as new tobacco and nicotine products. A new report on tobacco industry...
New WHO trends report shows slight decrease in tobacco use in the Region and urges countries to step up action to keep this up
17 November 2021 | WHO’s latest report on trends in prevalence of tobacco use 2000-2025, fourth edition shows that there are 1.30 billion tobacco users globally compared to 1.32 billion in 2015. This number is expected to drop to 1.27 billion by 2025. Sixty countries are now on track to achieving the voluntary global target of a 30% reduction in...
