Pakistan wins WHO award in recognition of contributions to tobacco control

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has awarded the World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) 2026 Award to Pakistan in recognition of its outstanding contributions to tobacco control.

According to the statement issued by the WHO, the award was given jointly to the Tobacco Control Cell of Pakistan’s Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination and Dr Waseem Iftikhar Janjua, Senior Researcher at the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI).

The WNTD Award is presented annually to individuals or organisations from each of the six WHO Regions in recognition of their outstanding contributions to tobacco control.

The statement further added that Pakistan successfully reduced tobacco consumption by 15.7% between 2014 and 2024, because of measures implemented to fulfil its international obligations under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), according to new findings from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) 2024 led by the Government of Pakistan in partnership with WHO and the CDC Foundation.

“Tobacco products are still consumed by 16.1% of the Pakistani population aged 15 and above. As a result, each year, tobacco continues to cause nearly 164,000 deaths and economic losses of over 1,800 billion Pakistani rupees (around US$6.6 billion).”

It said that the GATS 2024 results were presented – under the leadership of Health Minister Mustafa Kamal – as part of the extended celebrations of WNTD and the international campaign launched by WHO under the theme “Unmask the Appeal – Countering Tobacco and Nicotine Addiction.”

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The survey followed a science-based global standard protocol for systematically monitoring adult tobacco use, offering the last decade’s trends and a comparison with the 2014 round.

It was conducted by the National Institute of Population Studies Training and Research in collaboration with the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination – through its Tobacco Control Cell – and WHO. More than 11,000 interviews were completed with an overall response rate of 95.6%.

Decline in exposure to secondhand smoke

Among other encouraging key findings, the GATS 2024 results underline that – between the previous survey in 2014 and 2024 – the exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke in Pakistan decreased in all locations measured in both surveys: homes (48.3% to 28.8%), workplaces (69.1% to 35.9%), government buildings (64.6% to 40.7%), private buildings (77.3% to 54.8%), healthcare facilities (37.6% to 24.5%), restaurants (86.0% to 55.2%), marriage halls (65.7% to 50.3%), public transportation (76.2% to 45.4%), universities (44.2% to 33.3%), and schools (25.1% to 11.5%).

Furthermore, the survey reported a decrease in exposure to tobacco advertising or promotions in stores (from 20.4% to 17.8%) and to any tobacco advertisements, promotions or sponsorships (from 38.6% in 2014 to 30.5%).

However, female consumption of tobacco increased slightly by 1.7%, with 5.9% of women aged 15 and above smoking, and there was a marginal decrease in the percentages of smokers who made a quit attempt in the past 12 months (from 24.7% to 24.1%) and who were advised to quit when visiting a health-care provider (from 51.8% to 49.9%).

Key tobacco control measures to prevent major health risks

The findings further added that since 2014, under the umbrella of the WHO FCTC, Pakistan had implemented key policy changes to reduce tobacco consumption, including a 208% increase in tobacco taxation during fiscal year 2022–2023; larger pictorial health warnings on tobacco packaging; a ban on the sale of loose cigarettes nationwide; the National Tobacco Control Strategy 2022–2030; and the establishment of provincial Tobacco Control Cells and Implementation and Monitoring Committees, among others.

The Secretary of the Ministry of National Health Regulations, Services and Coordination Muhammad Aslam Ghauri, while addressing the event, said that “this year’s WNTD theme, ‘Unmask the Appeal – Countering Tobacco and Nicotine Addiction,’ served as a timely reminder of the evolving tactics employed by the tobacco and nicotine industries to target young populations and create lifelong addiction.

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“The emergence of electronic cigarettes, vaping devices, heated tobacco products, and digital advertising platforms has transformed the tobacco epidemic into a more complex public health challenge. The aggressive targeting of youth through flavoured products, social media influence, and misleading perceptions regarding safer alternatives demands urgent and coordinated policy action,” he said.

Ghauri reminded that Pakistan continued to face a significant burden of tobacco use. “The findings of the GATS Pakistan 2024 reveal that approximately 22.7 million adults currently use tobacco products in the country. Exposure to secondhand smoke and tobacco advertising remains widespread, particularly in public spaces and among younger age groups. Approximately 163,600 Pakistanis die each year due to causes related to tobacco, accounting for 448 deaths per day.”

WHO’s Representative in Pakistan, Dr Luo Dapeng, said, “The GATS 2024 results confirm that, together, we can protect and save lives thanks to international cooperation and the implementation of specific measures such as taxation and banning tobacco advertisements that are particularly targeting our children and teenagers.”

“The science is very clear: all tobacco products are killers. WHO will always stand with Pakistan to protect our children and our families from this public health threat,” he added.