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Extraordinary “Smoke Free Partnership” (SFP) meeting

Being a member of the Coalition Smoke Free Partnership, representative of the Association „Health Mission“ Srmena Krstev participated at its extraordinary meeting, on 28 and 29 November 2017, devoted to the priorities in 2018-2021.

The meeting took place at the SFP premises in Brussels. Florance Bertteletti, the President of the SFP informed the participants with the priorities of the Coalition work in 2018-2021, as follows:

  1. Tobacco taxation, and particularly development of the new EU Tobacco Tax Directive (TTD). The high-level meeting is planned for the end of April in Bulgaria, to support tobacco tax advocacy campaign, as well as ratification of the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade of Tobacco Products. All partners were asked to save the time and find at least one person from the Ministry of Finance responsible for tobacco taxation.
  2. Fighting against illicit trade and establishing the status of ratification of the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade of Tobacco Products in countries. All partners should find and send the name of one person from the Customs.
  3. Tobacco control research to promote and support policy recommendations on health policy research, as well as research of the interference of tobacco industry.
  4. Tobacco and development which means a capacity building and identification of experts in the field of development and programs on non-communicable chronic diseases (NCD).

However, apart of these activities, SFP will continue to work on smoke free policies, tobacco industry interference, ban on advertising at the point of sale and plain packages of tobacco products.

Preliminary, „Health Mission“ would be involved in tobacco control research and the influence of tobacco on development. Representatives of all partners presented their priorities and problems.

All partners signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the SFP for 2018-2012. For “Health Mission” MoU was signed by its President Nataša Lazarević.

During the meeting the participants were informed that European Parliament approved the European Commission’s proposal for tracking and tracing tobacco products, based on articles 15(11) and 16(2) Tobacco Products Directive 40/14/EU.

More data can be find on the website of the SFP.