The Framework Convention Alliance (FCA), also called the Framework Convention Alliance for Tobacco Control, is a confederation of nearly 500

organizations An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived fr ...

from more than 100

countries A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while t ...

which banded together to support the

negotiation Negotiation is a dialogue between two or more people or parties to reach the desired outcome regarding one or more issues of conflict. It is an interaction between entities who aspire to agree on matters of mutual interest. The agreement c ...

ratification Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inte ...

and

implementation Implementation is the realization of an application, or execution of a plan, idea, model, design, specification, standard, algorithm, or policy. Industry-specific definitions Computer science In computer science, an implementation is a real ...

of the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level o ...

(WHO)

Framework Convention on Tobacco Control The World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is a treaty adopted by the 56th World Health Assembly held in Geneva, Switzerland on 21 May 2003. It became the first World Health Organization treaty adopted under ...

(FCTC). The FCA was formed in 1999 when

negotiations Negotiation is a dialogue between two or more people or parties to reach the desired outcome regarding one or more issues of conflict. It is an interaction between entities who aspire to agree on matters of mutual interest. The agreement c ...

began in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situ ...

. At first, the organization was a loose group of

nongovernmental organizations A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...

universities A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

and others who shared an interest in seeing a strong

treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal perso ...

free from interference from the

tobacco industry The tobacco industry comprises those persons and companies who are engaged in the growth, preparation for sale, shipment, advertisement, and distribution of tobacco and tobacco-related products. It is a global industry; tobacco can grow in any ...

. Today, the FCA is a nonprofit incorporated in Switzerland with a representative office in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

. The Board of Directors represents all six

regions.

Membership Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

is free to any organization which shares FCA's vision for

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ch ...

control. FCA's vision is a world free from the devastating health, social, economic and environmental consequences of tobacco and tobacco use. Its mission is to help strengthen the FCTC, support its full and effective implementation worldwide, integrate the FCTC into broader international health and development efforts and seek novel strategies to free the world from tobacco-caused harms. In its Strategic Plan, 2014–2017, FCA listed six strategic priorities: # Promote and support global health by ensuring the development and implementation of the FCTC, by strengthening the FCTC COP processes and by encouraging whole-of-government and whole-of-society (excluding the tobacco industry) engagement in FCTC implementation; # Further position the tobacco epidemic as a global public health and development priority and promote the FCTC as the best means to address the epidemic; # Mobilise and strengthen global, regional, and national civil society capacity in support of the FCTC; # Monitor the implementation of the FCTC; # Ensure that the FCTC remains relevant and responsive to global changes that affect tobacco use, in particular, changes in the strategies, tactics and behaviour of tobacco companies; # Strengthen FCA's institutional capacity to enable it to meet its strategic priorities. In 2016, FCA's Board of Directors adopted a new planning document
Framework Convention Alliance: 2020 Strategy
The plan is designed to assist the FCTC COP take the treaty to the next step in its development: accelerating implementation of tobacco control measures at country level. FCA has

consultative status The consultative status is a phrase whose use can be traced to the founding of the United Nations and is used within the UN community to refer to "Non-governmental organizations ( NGOs) in Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and So ...

with the

United Nations Economic and Social Council The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC; french: links=no, Conseil économique et social des Nations unies, ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields ...

(ECOSOC).

References

External links

* India steps up fight against cigarette firms over health warnings{{Cite news, url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-tobacco-idUSKCN0X20YM, title = India steps up fight against cigarette firms over health warnings, newspaper = Reuters, date = 5 April 2016
Amid Global Push For Tobacco Plain Packaging
IP And Health Rights Bog Down Africa
India Calls For Cigarette Companies To Expand Warnings

FCA Official Site

Tobacco Free Kids

World Heart Federation
Tobacco control