The Conference of the Parties (COP) to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) convened in Geneva from 17–22 November to review progress and strengthen implementation of the Convention. Delegates from governments, international organizations, and civil society, including FDI examined a broad set of measures aimed at reducing tobacco use and addressing the environmental harms caused by tobacco production, consumption, and waste. With 183 Parties to the Convention, 90% of the global population currently live in a territory that has committed to tobacco control.  

FDI has engaged with the WHO FCTC since its adoption in 2005 and continues to support its implementation through advocacy and capacity building programmes developed to train oral health teams to deliver tobacco cessation interventions.  

2025 Global Progress Report reveals important milestones and persistent challenges

At COP11, Parties reviewed 20 years of progress under the WHO FCTC, the first treaty ever negotiated under the auspices of the WHO. 

During the debates on measures that expand or intensify tobacco control, birthdate-based sales restrictions (BSRs) which bans inidviduals born after a specified date from tobacco use throughout their lifetime, was reported as the most widely reported innovation. The Maldives has already implemented the policy, effective from 1 November 2025, while numerous cities in Massachusetts, USA, have adopted similar measures. The United Kingdom has introduced BSR legislation, though it is not yet in force, and proposals are under consideration in South Australia and several Canadian provinces. Variations of the policy have also been floated in Australia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Tasmania, and three U.S. states.

More than three-quarters of 129 Parties that submitted their national reports have adopted measures to safeguard public health policies from commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry. In addition, many countries have introduced targeted actions to protect vulnerable populations, particularly children and young people, from exposure to tobacco smoke. These measures include bans on tobacco use in vehicles, near schools, and in recreational areas. Furthermore, several Parties have also expanded restrictions on tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship (TAPS) to cover novel tobacco and nicotine products. 

Despite these advances, challenges remain. The most frequently cited constraints and barriers faced by reporting Parties were the lack of staff and human resources, insufficient financial resources and interference by the tobacco industry and its allies. Of the reporting countries, just over half have a national tobacco control plan or strategy, and only about one in three report that these plans are fully funded. Also, regulation of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and electronic non-nicotine delivery systems (ENNDS) remains less robust than the regulation of traditional tobacco products.

FDI participates in a High-Level dialogue at COP11  

On Friday, 21 November, FDI co-organized a side event with the NCD Alliance titled “Strengthening Tobacco Control to Achieve SDG 3.4 on NCDs: A Global Imperative”. The session brought together Parties, non-Party States, parliamentarians, civil society, and international partners to examine how strengthened implementation of the WHO FCTC can accelerate progress toward the NCD-related Sustainable Development Goals and help fulfil the political commitments made at the fourth United Nations High-Level Meeting on the prevention and control of NCDs.

This high-level dialogue featured interventions from a Member of Parliament of Ghana and Mexico’s Representative to WHO. FDI was represented by Asst. Prof. Simona Dianišková, Vice-Chair of FDI’s Public Health Committee and member of the tobacco cessation expert group. She highlighted the impact of FDI’s tobacco cessation workshop programme, which has been implemented across 18 countries and territories, reaching over 1,100 oral health professionals, over the past five years. In her remarks, she encouraged governments to formally endorse and scale up FDI’s tobacco cessation workshops, and to work closely with National Dental Associations and other health professions to expand access to evidence-based cessation services across all levels of the health system.

Parties endorse decisions on domestic resource mobilization, innovative tobacco control measures and liability

At COP11, Parties adopted several landmark decisions aimed at advancing global tobacco control. These include commitments to implement progressive regulatory measures and actions to hold the tobacco industry financially liable for the harm it causes to health and the environment.

Parties were also urged to develop comprehensive regulatory frameworks for new and emerging nicotine and tobacco products, which continue to present significant challenges for global tobacco control efforts.

Through another decision, Parties reaffirmed that domestic resource mobilization is essential for ensuring predictable funding for national tobacco control programmes. 

WHO recommends that taxes that ensure the total tax burden accounts for at least 75% of the retail price of tobacco products, a proven measure to reduce consumption and generate revenue for health programmes.

At COP11, WHO reminded Parties that all tobacco, nicotine and related products pose health risks, including risk of addiction. WHO also called attention to how tobacco and nicotine companies are manipulating the public health concept of “harm reduction” to mass market harmful products like e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches to the public at large and urged parties to implement comprehensive tobacco control measures that reduce demand and supply for all tobacco, nicotine and related products.

COP11 attracted a record number of registrations, over 1,600, demonstrating growing global engagement and political interest in tobacco control.