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• Corporate Accountability International: NGOs Urge African Health Ministers to Support Global Tobacco Treaty 

As African Ministers of Health gather at a meeting organized by the African Union, members of the Network for Accountability of Tobacco Transnationals (NATT) are urging health officials from countries throughout Africa to swiftly advance ratification of the global tobacco treaty. In recent weeks, corporate accountability and health advocates have organized events in countries across Africa to build support for ratification of the treaty, formally known as the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). Events in Uganda, Zambia, Nigeria, Togo and beyond have made headlines.

"This treaty will save millions of lives and change the way giant tobacco corporations operate around the world," says Megan Rising of Corporate Accountability International. "It demonstrates that working together, the nations of the world and their NGO allies can protect people from irresponsible and dangerous actions of corporations like British American Tobacco (BAT) and Philip Morris/Altria."

Governments must ratify by November 8th for their delegates to have a vote at the treaty's first enforcement meeting early next year. The tobacco industry -- which has been aggressively targeting Africa to expand markets for its deadly products -- has been attempting to derail African countries' ratification by spreading misinformation about the treaty. For example, tobacco corporations have tried to convince some officials that they cannot ratify until after they have passed domestic legislation to implement the treaty.

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