The UN’s post-2015 development goal process is still in full swing. Member states have spent the last week discussing ways to finance the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

These discussions are all setting the stage for the Financing for Development (Ffd) conference in Addis Ababa this July, where UN member states will finalize their decisions on how to fund the SDGs.

Raising tobacco taxes to fund development work is a win for tobacco control, a win for public health, and a win for development!

Tobacco taxes have been recognized by Jeffrey Sachs (a highly respected economist) and his team from the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) in their new report on financing sustainable development. The SDSN makes recommendations on various SDG matters.

ASH submitted suggestions to the first draft of this SDSN document in which tobacco taxes were not a major focus. Now, tobacco taxes are included in the paper, front and center. There are several crucial references, demonstrating that tobacco taxes cause a reduction of tobacco consumption, improve overall health, and can be a source of revenue for governments.

Member states will review and consider this document when drafting the final version of the Addis Accord – the resulting outcome of the Financing for Development (Ffd) meeting in Ethiopia this July.

We will continue advocating for the inclusion of tobacco control in the post-2015 UN development agenda which will benefit the entire public health community.

Stay tuned!

The SDSN report is available here>