WHO global report on trends in prevalence of tobacco smoking 2000-2025. Third edition

The WHO Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases 2013-2020 includes a target for reducing the global prevalence of tobacco use (smoked and smokeless tobacco) by 30% by the year 2025 relative to 2010. Although the target for reducing tobacco use was set as a global target, each country is at liberty to set its own target. This report indicates whether tobacco use in each country is likely to achieve a 30% reduction by 2025, or, if not, whether the trend is upwards, flat or downwards. Recent improvements in the quantity and quality of national data allows calculation of internationally comparable estimates of prevalence levels and trends in most countries. Combined, these estimates help us understand regional and global average prevalence rates, and whether or not we are collectively tracking towards meeting tobacco use reduction targets.
Each year, more countries are calculating their own trends and projections of tobacco use. Country-produced estimates are no less valid than WHO estimates. The value of WHO estimates is mainly to extract a global picture from comparable estimates by using one method for all countries. WHO estimates undergo a country consultation prior to publication, and country feedback is taken into account when producing final results.
WHO published the first edition of this report in 2015, and the second edition in 2018. This is the third edition in the series. Previous editions focused on tobacco smoking rates rather than all tobacco use rates, because the volume of data about smoking was high enough to allow global analyses. In contrast, data on smokeless tobacco use and dual use of smoked and smokeless products was insufficient to allow global analyses of total tobacco use. [Extract]