Applications for the status of observer to the Conference of the Parties

Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Seventh session Delhi, India, 7 - 12 November 2016 Provisional agenda item 2 FCTC/COP/7/3 31 August 2016 66 Applications for the status of observer to the Conference of the Parties INTRODUCTION Procedures of the COP for review of applications for observer status 1. New applications by international intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) are governed by Rule 30.1 of the Rules of Procedure (RoP) of the COP, which states: “Any international intergovernmental organization may apply, in accordance with its internal rules, to the Secretariat for observer status, which may be granted by the Conference of the Parties, based on the report from the Secretariat, taking into account the 17 th and 18 th preambular paragraphs as well as Article 5.3 of the Convention. Such applications, duly endorsed by the governing body of the organization concerned, should be submitted to the Secretariat not later than ninety days before the opening of the session”. 2. Rule 31.2 of the RoP stipulates that international and regional nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), “whose aims and activities are in conformity with the spirit, purpose and principles of the Convention, may apply for observer status, which may be granted by the Conference of the Parties, based on the report of the Secretariat, and taking into account the 17 th and 18 th preambular paragraphs as well as Article 5.3 of the Convention. Such applications should be submitted to the Secretariat not later than ninety days before the opening of the session”. 3. At its second session (COP2), the COP provided guidance to the Secretariat under decision FCTC/COP2(6) 1 in respect of its preparation of reports under Rule 31.2. Furthermore, COP5 adopted a standard application form 2 to be used by NGOs seeking observer status. 4. In accordance with Rule 31.2 of the RoP and decision FCTC/COP2(6), the Convention Secretariat examines the information and the supporting documentation provided by applicant NGOs and prepares a report to enable the Bureau to make a recommendation to the COP, as mandated by the COP in accordance with decision FCTC/COP5(20) 3 . 1 http://apps.who.int/gb/fctc/PDF/cop2/COP2_07_CDDecisions-en.pdf 2 Available at http://www.who.int/fctc/cop/ngo_application 3 http://apps.who.int/gb/fctc/PDF/cop5/FCTC_COP5(20)-en.pdf FCTC/COP/7/3 2 5. The following organizations have submitted their applications to the Convention Secretariat for the status of observer to the COP: Applications by intergovernmental organizations: East African Community 6. At COP6 in Moscow (Russian Federation, 13−18 October 2014), it was decided to defer consideration of the application for observer status submitted by the East African Community (EAC), due to the lack of a governing body decision on its application, until the next session of the COP. 7. Following COP6, the Convention Secretariat notified EAC of the COP’s decision4 by letter, dated 17 November 2014, stating that consideration of the application for observer status of EAC had been deferred pending the submission of additional information. In particular, considering that the application was submitted by the Secretariat of EAC, the COP requested that EAC confirm that its application for observer status was approved by EAC’s sectoral council for health and any other relevant higher constituency. Also the COP wanted to receive EAC’s full understanding of the objectives of the WHO FCTC and the obligations of its Parties, bearing in mind the 17 th and 18 th preambular paragraph and Article 5.3. 8. The Convention Secretariat followed up on the letter by email on 19 April 2016. Both the letter and the email remain unanswered 90 days 5 before the opening of COP7. 9. Based on the above, the Bureau recommends that COP reject the EAC’s application for observer status. Applications by nongovernmental organizations: 10. The following 16 NGOs have submitted applications in due time6: All India Bidi Industry Federation, Aman-Saulyk, American Cancer Society, Childlink Foundation, Consumer Packaging Manufacturers Alliance, Federation of All India Farmer Associations, InterAmerican Heart Foundation, Kelab Integrasi Komuniti dan Sosial, Lega Italiana Anti Fumo, Philippine Tobacco Institute Inc., Polish Cancer Patient Coalition, Sarhad Chamber of Agriculture, Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association, Virginia Tobacco Farmers Associations, Vision mondiale de la santé (World Health Vision) and World Farmers’ Organisation. 11. A brief summary of the background information and supporting documentation submitted by the these organizations in support of their applications is provided below. American Cancer Society 12. The application by the American Cancer Society (ACS) was submitted by its Vice President on 8 April 2016. From the information provided in the application form, ACS appears to be a not-for-profit, non-governmental entity registered on 15 May 1922 and governed by a single Board of Directors, which has a formal relationship with WHO. 4 See decision FCTC/COP6(2) 5 See Rules of the Procedure 30.1 6 See Rule 30.1 and 31.2 of the Rules of the Procedure FCTC/COP/7/3 3 13. The organization’s aims/objectives are centred in four areas: staying well by helping people take steps to prevent cancer or find it at its earliest stage; getting well through around-the-clock availability to help people through every step of their cancer experience; funding and conducting research that helps us better understand, prevent, and find cures for cancer; and fighting back by working with lawmakers to pass laws to defeat cancer and rally communities worldwide to join the fight. 14. The geographical scope of the organization and its main activities are international. 15. The ACS’s main fields of work and activities are, in particular, its research and prevention teams that focus on capacity building across multiple WHO FCTC articles and on promoting the development of comprehensive WHO FCTC-compliant tobacco control legislation. The research team continues its cutting edge research in the area of tobacco taxation (Article 6); illicit trade (Article 15 and the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (the Protocol)); tobacco farming (Article 17); tobacco and the environment (Article 18), and the effect of trade and investment policy on tobacco control. Also, ACS has been very active in recent years in facilitating research, technical assistance and other types of assistance around Article 6 of the WHO FCTC in many countries 7 . 16. The ACS application also says that while the organization has been very active for more than a decade in terms of generating policy-relevant research around the challenges of illicit trade (Article 15 and the Protocol) it recently begun working with partners in the European Union and Colombia to help facilitate the necessary research to mitigate the flow of illicit tobacco products. 17. In its application, ACS indicates that it believes that it can make a valuable contribution within the context of the WHO FCTC and envisage an important role in the coming years in terms of supporting implementation of the WHO FCTC across multiple regions of the world. Furthermore, ACS will continue to work with non-Parties to help these countries to move forward and become Parties to the Convention. 18. ACS declares in its application that it does not receive any financial or other contribution or assistance from the tobacco industry or its affiliates. 19. The Bureau reviewed the Secretariat’s report in its second meeting in April 2016 and recommends to COP that observer status be granted to ACS, in accordance with Rule 31.2 of the RoP. InterAmerican Heart Foundation 20. The application by the InterAmerican Heart Foundation (IAHF) was submitted by its Executive Director on 27 June 2016. From the information provided in the application form, IHF appears to be a corporation established in 1995, with formal relations with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). 21. The organization’s aim/objectives are to reduce heart disease and strokes, and related non-communicable diseases and promote health through research, advocacy, public awareness and education. 22. The geographical scope of the organization and its main activities are regional8. 7 Chile, Colombia, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Togo, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon. 8 In the region of the Americas. FCTC/COP/7/3 4 23. According to the application, the main fields of work/activities of the organization are tobacco control, healthy eating/physical activity, hypertension and emergency cardiovascular care. 24. In terms of support in the implementation of the WHO FCTC and the reason why the organization is seeking observer status, IHF mentioned that for the past 10 years the foundation has been working on the implementation of Articles 5.3, 6, 8, 11, 13 and 14 and from 2015 to 2020, the foundation will focus on taxation and illicit trade, tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, smoking cessation and compliance with regulation. 25. IAHF declares in its application that it does not receive any financial or other contribution or assistance from the tobacco industry or its affiliates. 26. The Bureau reviewed the Secretariat’s report and recommends to COP that observer status be granted to IAHF, in accordance with Rule 31.2 of the RoP. Vision mondiale de la santé / World Vision Health 27. The application by World Vision Health (WVH) was submitted by its Vice Director on 21 April 2016. From the information provided in the application form, WVH appears to be an NGO concerned with humanitarian and medical-social health issues and was established in 2016, with special consultative status to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC). 28. The organization’s aim/objectives are to contribute to and conduct humanitarian responses to health emergencies, chronic communicable diseases etc., by piloting medico-social humanitarian health interventions to support and strengthen the institutional frameworks of health facilities. 29. The geographical scope of the organization and main activities are regional, in sub-Saharan Africa. 30. According to the application, the main fields of work/activities of the organization are to support health system development, strengthen the development of maternal and neonatal health care and promote the provision of education for the promotion of health. 31. In terms of support in the implementation of the WHO FCTC and the reason why the organization is seeking observer status, WVH’s focus will be on Article 14. Reducing risk factors and prevention are a priority. 32. WVH declares in its application that it does not receive any financial or other contribution or assistance from the tobacco industry or its affiliates. 33. The Bureau reviewed the Secretariat’s report and recommends to COP that observer status be granted to WVH, in accordance with Rule 31.2 of the RoP. 34. The Bureau reviewed applications from the following 12 NGOs and concluded that they justify rejection under one of the following criteria: 1) have a national or sub-national geographical scope or their main activities are mainly conducted at national or sub-national level;2) have a conflict of interest or are tied to the tobacco industry or tobacco front groups; 3) have no tobacco control activities; or 4) have deliberately amended the declaration of interest in the application form, which renders it invalid. 1) All India Bidi Industry Federation, 2) Aman-Saulyk, 3) Consumer Packaging Manufacturers Alliance, FCTC/COP/7/3 5 4) Childlink Foundation, 5) Federation of All India Farmer Associations, 6) Lega Italiana Anti Fumo (LIAF), 7) Kelab Integrasi Komuniti dan Sosial, 8) Philippine Tobacco Institute Inc., 9) Polish Cancer Patient Coalition, 10) Sarhad Chamber of Agriculture, 11) Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association, 12) Virginia Tobacco Farmers Associations. 35. A summary table on the information from the application forms of the 16 NGO applicants can be found in Annex 1. 36. With regard to the application of the World Farmers’ Organization (WFO), COP6 rejected observer status for WFO in decision FCTC/COP6(2) because of its links to the tobacco industry. Nevertheless, WFO applied again this year and the new application is similar to the one submitted in 2014. 37. The Bureau therefore recommended to the COP that the 12 NGOs listed above should be denied observer status. ACTION BY THE CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES 38. The COP is invited to consider the application of EAC for the status of observer to the COP, in accordance with Rule 30.1 of the RoP of the COP, taking into account the recommendation of the Bureau contained in paragraph 9. 39. The COP is invited to consider the applications submitted by the American Cancer Society, the InterAmerican Heart Foundation and Vision mondiale de la santé (World Health Vision) for the status of observer to the COP, in accordance with Rule 31.2 of the RoP of the COP, taking into account the recommendations of the Bureau of the COP contained in paragraphs 19, 26 and 33 above. 40. The COP is also invited to consider the applications submitted by Childlink Foundation, Consumer Packaging Manufacturers Alliance, Lega Italiana Anti Fumo (LIAF), Polish Cancer Patient Coalition, Aman-Saulyk, Sarhad Chamber of Agriculture, Philippine Tobacco Institute Inc., Kelab Integrasi Komuniti dan Sosial, All India Bidi Industry Federation, Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association, Virginia Tobacco Farmers Associations, Federation of All India Farmer Associations and the World Farmers’ Organisation for the status of observer to the COP in accordance with Rule 31.2 of the RoP of the COP, taking into account the recommendations of the Bureau of the COP contained in paragraphs 34 and 35 above. 41. The COP is further invited to give guidance on setting criteria, including what kind of organizations are not eligible to apply or reapply for observer status to the COP, which will guide the Bureau in its review of applications and its further recommendations to the COP for its consideration and decision. The COP is also invited to consider any other relevant aspect in the accreditation process of the observers to the COP, including criteria to guide the review of applications from the growing number of applicants with commercial interests involving the tobacco value chain. FCTC/COP/7/3 6 Annex 1 Applications for the status of observer to the Conference of the Parties : responses from the applicants NGO name Type of organization international and/or regional Specify as in the non-exhaustive list in the 17th preambular Main fields of work/activities of the organization Activities that the organization envisages undertaking in support of implementation of the WHO FCTC with particular reference to specific articles of the WHO FCTC Declaration of conflict of interests9 Tobacco Industry (Y/N) or those working to further its interests? 10 (Y/N) 1 American Cancer Society Global (international) organization, national (US) and local focus Hybrid institution : Health professional body and a not-for- profit research body Promoting sponsored major programmes around Article 17 Research in the area of : tobacco taxation, illicit trade, tobacco farming, tobacco and the environment and the effects of trade and investment policy Article 6, 15, 17, 18; and the effects of trade and investment policy on tobacco control Declared no interest NO 2 Childlink Foundation National organization, Ghana Health, Women, Environmental Issues Awareness and Sensitization activities; Advocacy Create awareness on the dangers of tobacco use Declared no interest NO 3 Consumer Packaging Manufacturers Alliance Regional organization Represents the producers of packaging products who manufacture for a wide range of market sectors (including tobacco) To assist in assessing the industry in understanding changes being discussed by governments and regulatory authorities and helping in their future business requirements Facilitate the understanding of the regulatory trends within the COP7 objectives which will impact on packaging manufacturers Original Declaration was not signed11 YES 4 InterAmerican Heart Foundation, Inc. (IAHF) Regional organization in the region of the Americas NGO focused on NCDs, particularly on Heart Diseases and Stroke Tobacco Control ; Healthy eating/physical activity ; hypertension ; emergency cardiovascular care In the last 10 years the foundation has been working in the implementation of Articles 5.3, 6, 8, 11, 13 and 14 From 2015 to 2020 : Tobacco control : Taxation and illicit trade; tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship; smoking cessation; compliance with regulation Declared no interest NO 5 World Vision Health (VIMS) (Vision mondiale de la santé) Regional NGO in sub-Saharan Africa (DRC, Uganda, Gabon and Cote d’Ivoire) NGO humanitarian medical-social health of international character Press the development of health systems; strengthen the development of maternal and neonatal health care; promote the provision of education for the promotion of health Article 14 Risk factors, Prevention is a priority Declared no interest NO 6 Lega Italiana Anti Fumo (LIAF) National NGO of social utility Mission: to sensitize public opinion and young people over the risks associated with tobacco smoking Scientific research, social communication, fundraising, national and international cooperation, policy monitoring, patient support, networking Working to spread “antismoking culture”, raising public awareness with respect to the harm caused by tobacco smoking, sensitizing public authorities to comply with tobacco control policies and smoke- free legislation, promoting and financing research and antismoking campaigns and initiatives Declared no interest NO 9 This organization declares that it does not receive, has not received, and will not receive in the future, either directly or indirectly, any financial or other contributions or assistance from the tobacco industry or its affiliates ; This organization declares that it is not, either directly or indirectly, affiliated with members of the tobacco industry or any of its affiliates ; This organization declares that it has made reasonable efforts to ensure that none of its members receive, have received, or will receive in the future, either directly or indirectly, any financial or other contributions or assistance from the tobacco industry or its affiliates ; This organization declares that it has made reasonable efforts to ensure that none of its members, are, have been or will be, either directly or indirectly, affiliated with members of the tobacco industry or any of its affiliates. 10 Tobacco industry means tobacco manufacturers, wholesale distributors and importers of tobacco products (WHO FCTC, Article 1). Those working to further itsinterests, according to the Article 5.3 Guidelines. 11 The original Declaration was deliberately amended by the applicant. FCTC/COP/7/3 7 7 Polish Cancer Patient Coalition National organization Foundation health care representing patients with cancer, organizations in Poland Cooperation in development and implementation.; Presenting the position and needs of cancer patients before public institutions; patient advocacy, collecting funds and material resources from private institutions; monitoring of global market in the latest methods of prophylaxis, diagnosis and treatment of oncological diseases; cooperation with local authorities, government bodies of the EU and NGOs Article 7, Article 11, Article 12, Article 14 Declared no interest NO 8 Aman-Saulyk National NGO operating in Kazakhstan Working on health-related issues from human rights perspective Sound supply of drugs and medication to people, accessibility, mental health problems, rights of people with special needs, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, harm reduction, family and gender issues, rights of imprisoned people, palliative care rights, health of migrant workers, smoking among minors and anti- tobacco measures Article 4, article 8, article 13 and article 16 Declared no interest NO 9 Sarhad Chamber of Agriculture Local NGO in Pakistan’s Khyber Paktunkhwa province and has affiliations with other provincial associations Working for environmental change and helps to protect the rights of consumer groups Acts as a credible partner for over 100,000+ farmers to help them to improve agriculture practices Highlighting the importance of Article 5 at the provincial and the federal level Declared no interest No information 10 Philippine Tobacco Institute, Inc. (no website) Local organization, in the Philippines Industry association of cigarette manufacturers Assist the tobacco industry and the government with fiscal and regulatory issues Intent to support the implementation of Articles that are reasonable and evidence- based Declared no interest YES 11 Kelab Integrasi Komuniti dan Sosial (KLIKS) (no website) National organization Advocating for the regulation of the Malaysian vape industry Promoting the rights of consumers to less harmful products such as electronic nicotine delivery systems Declared no interest No information 12 All India Bidi Industry Federation (no website) National organization association of persons Membership comprises Bidi Manufacturers and Bidi Manufacturers Association 221 members Industry/bidi workers Support the efforts of the Indian Government to control tobacco consumption and advises its members to implement relevant regulations Original Declaration was not signed12 YES Bidi Industry 13 Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association (TVECA) International non-profit trade association Promotion of electronic cigarettes as less harmful alternatives to conventional tobacco products Dedicated to create a sensible and responsible electronic cigarette market by providing the media, legislative bodies and consumers with education, communication and research across the world Articles 4.4 and 4.7 Original Declaration was not signed13 No information 14 World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) International member-based organization of farmers Represent the global farming community Agricultural and rural communities’ agendas with a particular focus on the development and sustainability issues Articles 17 and 18 Declared no interest YES 15 Virginia Tobacco Farmers Associations (no website) National Voluntary Association Promoting the interests of thousands of tobacco farmers in Northern Light Soils-NLS Area and to proactively interact with growers to ensure their farming methods continue to be dynamic in meeting the ever-changing Coordinating and peak advocacy body for tobacco farmers and agricultural interests, improved communication between farmers and the local community Explain the basis of regulation on tobacco to their tobacco farmer friends in a much better way Original Declaration was not signed14 YES 16 Federation of All India Farmer Associations National NGO Support the farming community in India and create a sustainable future for farmers at the international, national, regional and local levels 31 members Empower and support farmers in influencing governments in policy framework; publications of specialized materials that include highlighting farmers’ situation and concerns; capacity building for rural farming communities to support and self-reliance and poverty reduction; actively associate in community development Articles 17 and 18 Original Declaration was not signed15 YES = = = 12 The original Declaration was deliberately amended by the applicant. 13 The original Declaration was deliberately amended by the applicant. 14 The original Declaration was deliberately amended by the applicant. 15 The original Declaration was deliberately amended by the applicant.