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2015 Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards for Global Tobacco Control: Meet the Winning Organizations

Congratulations to the winners of the third Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards for Global Tobacco Control. Each organization showed a strong commitment in the fight against this global epidemic, and we’re excited to celebrate their success at the World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Abu Dhabi this week.  Each year, nearly 5 million people worldwide – 14,000 per day – are killed by tobacco use, mostly in developing nations. The 2015 winners highlight the incredible progress being made to control tobacco use and show the effectiveness of the MPOWER method, developed by Mike Bloomberg and Margaret Chan in 2008. One winner is chosen for each MPOWER category:

  • Monitoring of tobacco use and prevention policies
  • Protecting people from tobacco smoke
  • Offering help to quit tobacco use
  • Warning about the dangers of tobacco
  • Enforcing bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship
  • Raising taxes on tobacco

Each of our six winning organizations has taken meaningful, measurable actions to reduce tobacco use, and have shown the power of what’s possible in creating better, longer lives for the people in their communities.

And the winners are…


2015 Awards for Global Tobacco Control Winner: Brazil Ministry of Health and National Institute of Statistics (IBGE)

Honored for their work in monitoring tobacco use and implementation of prevention policies

Brazil was the first country in the Americas to implement the Global Adult Tobacco Survey in 2008. The Ministry of Health’s partnership with the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics led to an innovative, effective survey system with a strong technical capacity to monitor tobacco control.  Brazil is now leading by example, demonstrating how countries can integrate “Tobacco Questions for Surveys” into their National Health Survey to advance public health.


2015 Awards for Global Tobacco Control Winner: Regional Advocacy Life Center (Ukraine)

Honored for their work in protecting the public from the dangers of tobacco through smoke-free laws

Ukraine’s Regional Advocacy Life Center led and coordinated support for the 2012 nationwide smoke-free law, as well as a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. Both laws have proven highly effective, making Ukraine a strong example for neighboring countries to follow.  In December 2013, the Regional Advocacy Life Center conducted nationwide monitoring of the comprehensive smoke-free law to test for compliance. Nearly 900 cafes, cars, and restaurants in Kiev and 10 other Ukrainian cities were included in this testing, which found a 90% compliance rate and only a 9% violation rate.


2015 Awards for Global Tobacco Control Winner: Uruguay Ministry of Health

Honored for their work in offering help to those who want to quit their tobacco use

Uruguay has been a regional and global leader in tobacco control for nearly a decade. In 2008, the nation’s Tobacco Control law mandated that all healthcare providers offer cessation support to their customers. Today, all 19 states do so.  Additionally, Uruguay has been hard at work integrating both public and private healthcare organizations into one unified national health system, enabling its citizens to easily receive advice through primary care physicians.  The Ministry of Health has implemented tobacco cessation in a strategic, sustainable, accessible, and affordable way by prioritizing other MPOWER measures including monitoring, protecting, warning, and raising.  Uruguay’s approach represents a successful model for how the MPOWER method can tackle tobacco use in low-income countries.

The Uruguay Ministry of Health was also a recipient of the 2012 Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards for Global Tobacco Control for warning people about the dangers of tobacco smoke with pack warnings.


2015 Awards for Global Tobacco Control Winner: Nepal Ministry of Health and Population

Honored for their work in warning people about the dangers of tobacco smoke

Nepal has taken the lead among Southeast Asian nations when it comes to controlling and reducing tobacco use.  Initiated by the Ministry of Health and Population in 2011, Nepal has enacted a comprehensive law comprised of large graphic health warnings, comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising and sponsorships, as well as a smoke-free law for public spaces—all while facing immense pressure from the tobacco industry.  To date, the Ministry of Health has faced 16 extensive court cases brought against the measure by the tobacco industry. Unbowed, the Ministry of Health and Population has won 14 of those cases, with two appeals currently pending.


2015 Awards for Global Tobacco Control Winner: KONFOP (Russia)

Honored for their work in enforcing bans on tobacco advertising and sponsorship

In 2013, Russia passed comprehensive tobacco control legislation that is among the strongest in the world. The measure includes a full and complete ban on all forms of TAPS (tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship).  KONFOP, one of the strongest and most tireless advocates for tobacco control in Russia, played a key role in securing passage of this legislation.  When the advertising ban provisions in the legislation were at risk of being removed from the bill under pressure from the tobacco industry, KONFOP gained access to tobacco industry documents and leaked them to the Ministry of Health and international and domestic media.  This action was crucial to the preservation of the TAPS provision.


2015 Awards for Global Tobacco Control Winner: The Philippines Department of Finance and Department of Health

Honored for their work in raising the price of tobacco

In 2012, the Philippines Department of Finance and Department of Health played a critical role in passing the Sin Tax Law, which raised tobacco taxes and created a more efficient model for earmarking the money raised. The Sin Tax Law also greatly simplified the tax system, introduced higher rates, and indexed the tax rate to an inflation proxy of 4% annually after 2017.  Since the law was implemented, the tobacco industry has attempted to manipulate the impact of the tax increase on consumption by lowering prices and frontloading cigarettes each year. Despite this strong opposition and interference, the Department of Finance has stood strongly for tax increases and has continued to vocalize their support to the media and Congress, and the Ministry of Health has been a supporter and partner in the passage of the Sin Tax Law.

 

Bloomberg Philanthropies celebrates the impressive work of these organizations and the progress across the world in reducing tobacco use.

To learn more about our Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use, click here.

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