October 8, 2012- The French version of The Tobacco Atlas – Fourth Edition has been launched in Dakar, Senegal with a call on African governments to set up aggressive tobacco control interventions to minimize the predicted negative trends of death, Disease and poverty. Experts predict devastating health and economic harm in Africa if current trends continue.
According to the American Cancer Society and World Lung Foundation, who released this version, Africa is a major target for tobacco industry sales and marketing.
41 out of the 46 Afro countries have ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control ( FCTC) which has established a set of guidelines for the (minimum) actions that governments must take to reduce tobacco use in their countries.
About the Fourth Edition
The Fourth Edition of The Tobacco Atlas was launched in English on March 21, 2012, at the World Conference on Tobacco OR Health in Singapore, a decade after the publication of the first edition. The Atlas presents the most up-to-date information on tobacco and tobacco control available in a highly graphic, easily understandable format. Data contained within the Atlas is gathered from multiple sources and validated to ensure it presents a holistic and accurate picture of tobacco and tobacco control across the globe. The updated version is also available online at TobaccoAtlas.org, where policy makers, public health practitioners, advocates and journalists may interact with the data and create customizable charts, graphs and maps.