The Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) participated in the recently concluded Regional Workshop on Indicators for Tobacco Control organized by the World Health Organization Western Pacific Regional Office held at Pan Pacific Hotel in Manila, Philippines last 23-25 August, 2010. The objective of the workshop is to harmonize the Regional Action Plan for the Tobacco Free Initiative (2010-2014) in the Western Pacific region by identifying priority indicators for monitoring progress in tobacco control at the country level and translating these into national action plans or equivalent.
SEATCA including other partner NGOs in the region helped in facilitating country discussions to help Ministry of Health representatives (national focal persons) from the Asia Pacific identify specific objectives, action points and indicators for tobacco control that are applicable and need to be prioritized in their respective countries. The following are indictors that were included during these discussions:
- Legislation and policies
- Tobacco taxation
- Governance and local enforcement
- Alliance and partnerships
- Investment planning and resource management
- Leadership training and human resource development
- Surveillance, monitoring and knowledge management
- Public awareness, education, communication and advocacy
