The tobacco industry is trying to block life-saving policies. No country has been spared.

Governments have the power to end this interference.

If they don’t take timely action, people will continue to die.

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lives every day.

0

lives every month.

0

lives every year.

Based on WHO estimates that more than 8 million lives are lost to tobacco per year.

Get the full picture on which countries are fighting back, and how.

The Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index shows which governments are leading the way in protecting policies from Big Tobacco’s meddling, and which governments can do better.

Global Report

Regional Reports

In-depth analyses of tobacco industry interference across regions

In partnership with

Trends by Region

In Cameroon, British American Tobacco was actively involved in developing the standards for its Velo and Vuse products, and provided financial support for the work. In Ethiopia, while the country privatized its state-owned tobacco enterprise, the law allows the industry to comment on tobacco control measures. In Kenya, British American Tobacco announced that it had agreed with the Ministry of Health about reversing a ban on nicotine pouches.

Tanzania’s Prime Minister advocated to increase tobacco farming and secure more markets, with the Minister of Agriculture committing to doubling tobacco production. In Madagascar, the government provided a 2% tax rebate for cigarettes manufactured with 70% or more locally produced tobacco. In Kenya, the Cabinet Secretary for Health was the chief guest at a breakfast roundtable meeting hosted by the National Chamber of Commerce and Industry for which British American Tobacco Kenya was a main sponsor.

In Sweden, members of the parliament attended the greenwashing campaign, “Håll Sverige Rent” (Keep Sweden Clean), of an NGO funded by Philip Morris International and other tobacco companies. In Switzerland, the Federal Office for the Environment formed a partnership with the main tobacco companies and launched a nationwide awareness campaign addressing cigarette littering. Their public message included: “Dispose of cigarette butts correctly because nature is not an ashtray,” a slogan lifted from a past Swiss Cigarette CSR campaign.

The General Police Headquarters of Poland organized a training by British American Tobacco Poland and the eSmoking Institute in Poznań associated with the company on counteracting smuggling of tobacco products. Georgian State Customs received training through a series of anti-illicit trade seminars conducted by Japan Tobacco International. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Administration of Indirect Taxation is implementing the “Stop the Smuggling” campaign in collaboration with the Association of Economists SWOT, which is supported by Philip Morris International, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco International.

In Korea, the local government of Suwon City endorsed KT&G to set up 33 cigarette butt bins in 23 public facilities and promoted the company’s “Sseudam Sseudam” (cigarette butts in the trash) campaign. Forestry Departments in Pakistan and Sri Lanka endorsed tree planting programs sponsored by local British American Tobacco subsidiaries. The mayor or Bangladesh’s Khulna City Corporation inaugurated the tree plantation “Bonayon” project sponsored by British American Tobacco.

In Lao PDR, the tobacco industry is not fully compliant in applying the 75%-size warnings on all its cigarette packs. In Myanmar, transnational tobacco companies and local cigarette and cheroot producers successfully lobbied for the standardized tobacco packaging implementation deadline to be pushed back. In Bangladesh, the implementation of pictorial health warnings (PHW) to be applied to the upper half of tobacco packs has been delayed since the High Court postponed the government order from 2017, following a further petition by the Bangladesh Cigarette Manufacturers’ Association.

In 2021 in Brazil, the industry used the Tobacco Sectorial Chamber to lobby the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to guide the intervention of Brazil during the ninth Conference of the Parties (COP9) negotiations. Through two unregistered meetings, it lobbied the government, with the Minister of Agriculture assuring the industry it would support tobacco producers during COP9. In Colombia, attempts to regulate industry lobbying have not been successful because, although the Anti-Corruption Statute may request information on lobbyists, it does not have specific reference to nor registration for tobacco industry entities.

In Argentina, the tobacco industry has links with different levels of government on child labor issues through the Fundación Vamos Andar-Programa Brazos Abiertos. At the national level, this organization coordinated British American Tobacco Argentina’s sponsored activities on child labor with the National Registry of Rural Workers and the National Secretariat for Children, Adolescents and Family of the Nation. In Brazil, the Ministry of Labour supports the “Growing Up Right” Institute, a project by Sinditabaco and its associated companies (including British American Tobacco Brasil, Philip Morris Brazil, Japan Tobacco International and Alliance One), which claims to promote education and fight child labor in rural areas.

In Iraq, the Minister of Industry visited Baghdad Tobacco Factory to express support for the tobacco business. In Lebanon, a representative of the British High Commission attended the inauguration of a new production line of the Lebanese state-owned tobacco monopoly, Regie, which was also attended by representatives of international tobacco companies.

In November 2022, Iran’s Vice President of Commerce and Economy promoted Iran Tobacco Company (ITC), a state-owned enterprise, through an agreement with Zimbabwe. The increase in tobacco investment was discussed during a visit led by Zimbabwe’s First Lady to Tehran. Two months later, ITC’s CEO and Zimbabwe’s Agriculture Minister signed an agreement for Zimbabwe to supply tobacco for cigarette manufacturing in Iran or for re-exports to Central Asia. In Iraq, the government provided various levels of support to the national tobacco industry, including tax exemptions and financial facilities.

Issues

Without full implementation of Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC, which aims to protect public policies from the influence of the tobacco industry, the industry is able to target departments friendly to its business, partner with governments on social programs that improve its reputation and apply influence outside of the public eye.

The tobacco industry has increasingly gone around ministries of health to other departments that may be more friendly to its business interests. The latest Index shows that the industry primarily targeted departments of finance, customs, commerce and investment. In some countries, these departments were persuaded by the industry’s exaggerated claims that increased tobacco taxes would worsen illicit trade.

Many governments either partnered with the industry or endorsed its “corporate social responsibility” activities around environmental issues. These included efforts to plant trees and clean up cigarette butt litter. Ultimately, these CSR activities distract from the many serious harms the tobacco industry causes to people and the environment.

Many countries still do not have comprehensive, whole-of-government policies in place to reduce unnecessary interaction with the industry, and to record all interactions between government officials and the industry. The result is that tobacco companies can lobby or directly influence policies without the public knowing.

Brunei Darussalam
Ranked 1 out of 90

Brunei Darussalam

Overall Score: 14

New Zealand
Ranked 2 out of 90

New Zealand

Overall Score: 27

France
Ranked 3 out of 90

France

Overall Score: 32

Netherlands
Ranked 3 out of 90

Netherlands

Overall Score: 32

Botswana
Ranked 5 out of 90

Botswana

Overall Score: 33

Ethiopia
Ranked 6 out of 90

Ethiopia

Overall Score: 37

Mongolia
Ranked 7 out of 90

Mongolia

Overall Score: 38

Uganda
Ranked 7 out of 90

Uganda

Overall Score: 38

Palau
Ranked 9 out of 90

Palau

Overall Score: 39

Mauritius
Ranked 10 out of 90

Mauritius

Overall Score: 41

Burkina Faso
Ranked 11 out of 90

Burkina Faso

Overall Score: 42

Nepal
Ranked 11 out of 90

Nepal

Overall Score: 42

Sri Lanka
Ranked 11 out of 90

Sri Lanka

Overall Score: 42

Norway
Ranked 14 out of 90

Norway

Overall Score: 43

Oman
Ranked 14 out of 90

Oman

Overall Score: 43

Ukraine
Ranked 16 out of 90

Ukraine

Overall Score: 44

Chad
Ranked 17 out of 90

Chad

Overall Score: 46

Montenegro
Ranked 17 out of 90

Montenegro

Overall Score: 46

Panama
Ranked 17 out of 90

Panama

Overall Score: 46

Nicaragua
Ranked 20 out of 90

Nicaragua

Overall Score: 47

Canada
Ranked 21 out of 90

Canada

Overall Score: 48

Côte d'Ivoire
Ranked 21 out of 90

Côte d'Ivoire

Overall Score: 48

Kenya
Ranked 21 out of 90

Kenya

Overall Score: 48

United Kingdom
Ranked 21 out of 90

United Kingdom

Overall Score: 48

Maldives
Ranked 25 out of 90

Maldives

Overall Score: 49

Islamic Republic of Iran
Ranked 26 out of 90

Islamic Republic of Iran

Overall Score: 50

Jamaica
Ranked 26 out of 90

Jamaica

Overall Score: 50

Mexico
Ranked 26 out of 90

Mexico

Overall Score: 50

Thailand
Ranked 26 out of 90

Thailand

Overall Score: 50

Israel
Ranked 30 out of 90

Israel

Overall Score: 51

Myanmar
Ranked 31 out of 90

Myanmar

Overall Score: 52

Gabon
Ranked 32 out of 90

Gabon

Overall Score: 53

Pakistan
Ranked 32 out of 90

Pakistan

Overall Score: 53

Solomon Islands
Ranked 32 out of 90

Solomon Islands

Overall Score: 53

Senegal
Ranked 35 out of 90

Senegal

Overall Score: 55

Spain
Ranked 36 out of 90

Spain

Overall Score: 56

Sudan
Ranked 36 out of 90

Sudan

Overall Score: 56

Kuwait
Ranked 38 out of 90

Kuwait

Overall Score: 57

Vietnam
Ranked 38 out of 90

Vietnam

Overall Score: 57

Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ranked 40 out of 90

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Overall Score: 58

Cambodia
Ranked 40 out of 90

Cambodia

Overall Score: 58

Costa Rica
Ranked 40 out of 90

Costa Rica

Overall Score: 58

Ghana
Ranked 40 out of 90

Ghana

Overall Score: 58

India
Ranked 40 out of 90

India

Overall Score: 58

Peru
Ranked 45 out of 90

Peru

Overall Score: 59

Chile
Ranked 46 out of 90

Chile

Overall Score: 60

Kazakhstan
Ranked 46 out of 90

Kazakhstan

Overall Score: 60

Republic of Korea
Ranked 46 out of 90

Republic of Korea

Overall Score: 60

Lebanon
Ranked 46 out of 90

Lebanon

Overall Score: 60

Nigeria
Ranked 46 out of 90

Nigeria

Overall Score: 60

Philippines
Ranked 46 out of 90

Philippines

Overall Score: 60

Venezuela
Ranked 46 out of 90

Venezuela

Overall Score: 60

Sweden
Ranked 53 out of 90

Sweden

Overall Score: 61

El Salvador
Ranked 54 out of 90

El Salvador

Overall Score: 62

Poland
Ranked 54 out of 90

Poland

Overall Score: 62

Egypt
Ranked 56 out of 90

Egypt

Overall Score: 63

South Africa
Ranked 57 out of 90

South Africa

Overall Score: 64

Fiji
Ranked 58 out of 90

Fiji

Overall Score: 65

Brazil
Ranked 59 out of 90

Brazil

Overall Score: 66

Ecuador
Ranked 59 out of 90

Ecuador

Overall Score: 66

Uruguay
Ranked 59 out of 90

Uruguay

Overall Score: 66

Guatemala
Ranked 62 out of 90

Guatemala

Overall Score: 67

Iraq
Ranked 62 out of 90

Iraq

Overall Score: 67

Mozambique
Ranked 62 out of 90

Mozambique

Overall Score: 67

Czech Republic
Ranked 65 out of 90

Czech Republic

Overall Score: 68

Madagascar
Ranked 66 out of 90

Madagascar

Overall Score: 69

Bolivia
Ranked 67 out of 90

Bolivia

Overall Score: 70

Germany
Ranked 67 out of 90

Germany

Overall Score: 70

Honduras
Ranked 67 out of 90

Honduras

Overall Score: 70

Lao PDR
Ranked 67 out of 90

Lao PDR

Overall Score: 70

Paraguay
Ranked 67 out of 90

Paraguay

Overall Score: 70

Bangladesh
Ranked 72 out of 90

Bangladesh

Overall Score: 72

Türkiye
Ranked 72 out of 90

Türkiye

Overall Score: 72

Bulgaria
Ranked 74 out of 90

Bulgaria

Overall Score: 73

China
Ranked 74 out of 90

China

Overall Score: 73

Argentina
Ranked 76 out of 90

Argentina

Overall Score: 74

Italy
Ranked 77 out of 90

Italy

Overall Score: 75

Malaysia
Ranked 78 out of 90

Malaysia

Overall Score: 76

Zambia
Ranked 79 out of 90

Zambia

Overall Score: 77

Colombia
Ranked 80 out of 90

Colombia

Overall Score: 78

Tanzania
Ranked 81 out of 90

Tanzania

Overall Score: 79

Romania
Ranked 82 out of 90

Romania

Overall Score: 80

United States of America
Ranked 82 out of 90

United States of America

Overall Score: 80

Cameroon
Ranked 84 out of 90

Cameroon

Overall Score: 81

Jordan
Ranked 85 out of 90

Jordan

Overall Score: 82

Georgia
Ranked 86 out of 90

Georgia

Overall Score: 83

Indonesia
Ranked 87 out of 90

Indonesia

Overall Score: 84

Japan
Ranked 88 out of 90

Japan

Overall Score: 88

Switzerland
Ranked 89 out of 90

Switzerland

Overall Score: 95

Dominican Republic
Ranked 90 out of 90

Dominican Republic

Overall Score: 100

There is an irreconcilable conflict between the tobacco industry’s interests and public healthy policy, but governments have the power to hold Big Tobacco accountable.

Learn More About Tobacco Industry Interference