The Global Tobacco War: International Development Research Centre

The Global Tobacco War: International Development Research Centre
Michael Smith

* Every year, about 3 million people around the world die from tobacco-related illnesses and the World Health Organization predicts that if current trends continue, the death toll will rise to 10 million a year by 2025 — including 7 million in the South.

* The World Bank estimates that, when its costs and benefits are tallied, tobacco represents a net loss to the global economy of US$200 billion a year.

* In some countries, tobacco competes directly with food for a share of the family income. And tobacco production uses agricultural land that could otherwise grow enough to feed millions of people.

As the above examples illustrate, the "tobacco war" is a global war with enormous social costs, argues Canadian anti-smoking activist Rob Cunningham.