Outcomes on Tobacco and Poverty during the ECOSOC 2004 Substantive Session
Following the success of World No Tobacco Day 2004 with the theme Tobacco and Poverty, (which was only possible thanks to everyone's support), the Tobacco Free Initiative has continued to work in several fronts to raise the relevance of the relationship between tobacco and poverty. To that effect, TFI organized during the month of July meetings with missions in New York on Tobacco, Poverty and the MDGs, and presented the Secretary General's report on the Activities of the UN task force to the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). TFI was also present providing technical inputs during the 30th plenary meeting of the ECOSOC 2004 Substantive Session. All this work culminated in the adoption, by the ECOSOC, of a new Resolution on Tobacco Control, adopted on 23 July 2004.
The new resolution recognizes the adverse health, economic, social and environmental impacts of tobacco and the link between tobacco use and poverty. It also recognizes the WHO FCTC as an important tool to reduce the burden imposed by tobacco use and calls on the ECOSOC members to ratify the Convention at the soonest opportunity.
Excerpts on tobacco-related information follow. This information has been extracted from the various press releases issued by ECOSOC on its substantive session 2004.