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UN PhotoWHO / GLOBAL TOBACCO EPIDEMIC REPORT
STORY: WHO / GLOBAL TOBACCO EPIDEMIC REPORT
TRT: 3:36
SOURCE: WHO
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT WHO ON SCREEN / EMBARGO TILL 23 JUNE AT 1PM EST
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 12 JUNE 2025, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“This report shows that the world is starting to turn the corner on tobacco control. 6.1 billion people are now protected by at least one tobacco control measure. That's over 75 percent of the world's population and five times more than in 2007.
3. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“There are only four countries that have achieved the full MPOWER technical package of tobacco control measures. Those are Brazil, Mauritius, the Netherlands and Türkiye. There are another seven countries that only have one measure to go to achieve this landmark achievement. Unfortunately, there are 40 countries that don't have a single one of these measures at best practice level yet.”
5. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“Graphic health warnings is one of the fastest moving measures from the MPOWER package, and we now have 110 countries that are covered that are protecting their populations with these graphic health warnings. It means that people can see that tobacco Kills and there's no hiding it.”
7. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“Tobacco companies used to be able to make their packaging as attractive and as misleading as they wanted to. Today, at least 110 countries now have graphic health warnings that reduce the amount of marketing that can be presented on the packaging and presents the real harms of tobacco use.”
9. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“There are a handful of countries that have consistently run tobacco control mass media campaigns that at best practice level. These include countries like Brazil, the United Kingdom, Vietnam. This means that they've presented a national campaign at least once every two years since we started collecting the data.”
11. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“The fight is not over. There is a long way to go. There are lots of gaps. Um, we know that there are over a billion people who are still smoking, many of which want to quit but can't find the access to cessation services to help them. Children between the ages of 13 and 15 still report using tobacco products, as well as the newer nicotine products like e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches. In 134 countries. Cigarettes are still affordable or even cheaper than they want than they were. We know that tobacco taxation is a really highly effective intervention to reduce tobacco use. So we need to see these interventions be taken up and implemented strongly in countries.”
13. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“Regulation of e-cigarettes is catching up. We have 133 countries with at least some form of regulation, or they've banned the sale of e-cigarettes entirely. At the same time, there are 62 countries that have no regulations at all for e-cigarettes.”
15. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Heba Gouda, Technical Officer, No Tobacco Unit, WHO:
“The Organization is calling for urgent, united action to continue the fight against tobacco and to protect future generations.”
17. Wide shot, Dr Heba Gouda, WHO Technical Officer speaking
The World Health Organization (WHO) today (23 Jun) released its report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic 2025 at the World Conference on Tobacco Control in Dublin, warning that action is needed to maintain and accelerate progress in tobacco control as rising industry interference challenges tobacco policies and control efforts.
The report focuses on the six proven WHO MPOWER tobacco control measures to reduce tobacco use, which claims over 7 million lives a year:
• Monitoring tobacco use and prevention policies;
• Protecting people from tobacco smoke with smoke-free air legislation;
• Offering help to quit tobacco use;
• Warning about the dangers of tobacco with pack labels and mass media;
• Enforcing bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship; and
• Raising taxes on tobacco.
Since 2007, 155 countries have implemented at least one of the WHO MPOWER tobacco control measures to reduce tobacco use at best-practice level. Today, over 6.1 billion people, three-quarters of the world’s population, are protected by at least one such policy, compared to just 1 billion in 2007. Four countries have implemented the full MPOWER package: Brazil, Mauritius, the Netherlands (Kingdom of the), and Türkiye. Seven countries are just one measure away from achieving the full implementation of the MPOWER package, signifying the highest level of tobacco control, including Ethiopia, Ireland, Jordan, Mexico, New Zealand, Slovenia and Spain.
However, there are major gaps. Forty countries still have no MPOWER measure at best-practice level and more than 30 countries allow cigarette sales without mandatory health warnings.
DRAFT: “Tobacco control is one of public health’s greatest success stories, but it is not a fight we have won,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization. “Progress has come through evidence, policy, and perseverance. To protect future generations, we must stay the course with renewed stamina, robust research, and strong partnerships. I urge countries to double down on proven policies that save lives, especially in areas that the report shows are stalling like taxation, cessation support, and media campaigns.”
The WHO Global Tobacco Epidemic 2025 report, developed with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies, was launched during the 2025 Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards for Global Tobacco Control. The awards celebrated several governments and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) making progress to reduce tobacco use.
“Since Bloomberg Philanthropies started supporting global tobacco control efforts in 2007, there has been a sea change in the way countries prevent tobacco use, but there is still a long way to go,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries. “Bloomberg Philanthropies remains fully committed to the WHO’s urgent work – and to saving millions more lives together.”
The WHO Global Tobacco Epidemic 2025 report reveals that the most striking gains have been in graphic health warnings, one of the key measures under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), that make the harms of tobacco impossible to ignore:
• 110 countries now require them — up from just 9 in 2007 — protecting 62% of the global population; and
• 25 countries have adopted plain packaging.
WHO warns, however, that enforcement is inconsistent, and smokeless tobacco packaging remains poorly regulated. The new report is accompanied by a new data portal that tracks country-by-country progress between 2007-2025.
Despite their effectiveness, 110 countries haven’t run anti-tobacco campaigns since 2022. However, 36% of the global population now lives in countries that have run best-practice campaigns, up from just 19 percent in 2022. WHO urges countries to invest in message-tested and evaluated campaigns.
Taxes, quit services and advertising bans have been expanding, but many improvements are needed:
• Taxation: 134 countries have failed to make cigarettes less affordable. Since 2022, just 3 have increased taxes to the best-practice level.
• Cessation: Only 33 percent of people globally have access to cost-covered quit services.
• Advertising bans: Best-practice bans exist in 68 countries, covering over 25% of the global population.
Around 1.3 million people die from second-hand smoke every year. Today, 79 countries have implemented comprehensive smoke-free environments, covering one-third of the world’s population. Since 2022, six additional countries (Cook Islands, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and Uzbekistan) have adopted strong smoke-free laws, despite industry resistance, particularly in hospitality venues.
There has been a growing trend to regulate the use of e-cigarettes or ENDS—Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems. The number of countries regulating or banning ENDS has grown from 122 in 2022 to 133 in 2024, a clear signal of increased attention to these products. However, over 60 countries still lack any regulations on ENDS.
WHO is calling for urgent action in areas where momentum is lagging. “Governments must act boldly to close remaining gaps, strengthen enforcement, and invest in the proven tools that save lives. WHO calls on all countries to accelerate progress on MPOWER and ensure that no one is left behind in the fight against tobacco,” said Dr Ruediger Krech, Director of Health Promotion.
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