Smoke-free laws in action: a guide for effective implementation and enforcement in the Western Pacific Region
Overview
This guide supports policy-makers, public health officials and enforcement agencies in bridging the critical gap between smoke-free laws and high compliance. Smoke-free environments are a cornerstone of tobacco control, protecting people from second-hand smoke exposure while denormalizing tobacco use. In recent years, governments have expanded their smoke-free policies to protect children in outdoor areas and private spaces, and to address use of new products in public places such as e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products. Despite significant advances in policy adoption across the Western Pacific Region, the full potential of smoke-free laws cannot be realized without effective implementation and enforcement — and compliance remains a persistent, widespread challenge.
The guide presents a structured framework organized around five interconnected elements of effective smoke-free law implementation: comprehensive legislation, robust implementation infrastructure, sustained public engagement, systematic enforcement operations, and continuous monitoring and evaluation. For each element, the guide offers practical actions that governments can adapt to their contexts. Three annexes support the application of the framework: a smoke-free law implementation checklist to assess whether key components are in place, a guide for developing a monitoring and evaluation plan with examples of measurable indicators, and a timeline for smoke-free law implementation and enforcement.
