China does not have laws on tobacco advertising and promotion
China currently does not have comprehensive laws or regulations on
tobacco advertising and promotion, although it ratified the WHO Framework
Convention on Tobacco Control in October 2005 and promised to ban all tobacco
advertising by January 2011. Much effort is needed to monitor the current situation of
tobacco advertising and promotion in China.
One developing country (Thailand) and two developed countries (Australia
and the USA) were selected for comparison. All four countries are part of the
International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Survey project. Between 2005
and 2006, parallel ITC surveys were conducted among adult smokers (at least smoked
weekly) in China (n=4763), Thailand (n=2000), Australia (n=1767) and the USA
(n=1780). Both unprompted and prompted recall of noticing tobacco advertising and
promotion were measured.
Chinese respondents reported noticing tobacco advertisements in a range of
channels and venues, with highest exposure levels on TV (34.5%), billboards (33.4%)
and in stores (29.2%). A quarter of respondents noticed tobacco sponsorships, and a
high level of awareness of promotion was reported. Cross-country comparison reveals
that overall reported awareness was significantly higher in China than in Thailand
(particularly) and Australia, but lower than in the USA.
Conclusions: There was a big gap between China and the better-performing countries
like Thailand and Australia regarding tobacco promotion restrictions. China needs to
do more, both enhanced policy and more robust enforcement.
