Expanding Fiscal Policies for Global and National Tobacco Control

Fiscal policy - the use of government spending and revenue generation powers - is a powerful tool available to governments in the struggle to control the tobacco epidemic. Examples of fiscal policy include implementing appropriate tobacco taxes, establishing effective tobacco control budgets and tapping into the tobacco economy to raise funds for public health. Yet there are knowledge gaps and structural barriers that hinder the development of effective fiscal policies to reduce tobacco use, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Few countries have set tobacco tax rates with health outcomes in mind. Fewer still have invested optimally in tobacco control or explored additional fiscal measures to influence tobacco supply or demand. And, in the vast majority of countries, there is a general lack of integration between fiscal and health policies. This project aims to accelerate the adoption of effective fiscal policies for public health by generating the knowledge needed by policymakers in low- and middle-income countries to address tobacco control. It will do so by identifying researchers working on tobacco control and/or innovative financing mechanisms in low- and middle-income countries, and supporting short-term targeted research projects. The project will be jointly management by the Global Tobacco Control Forum (a coalition of eight Canadian tobacco control nongovernmental organizations).