Abstract
OBJECTIVES: This paper explores the Bangladeshi tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship (TAPS) legislative environment, to highlight any potential policy loopholes and to facilitate the identification of additional provisions for inclusion. The study also aimed to identify valuable lessons applicable to other low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). METHODS: We conducted a qualitative health policy analysis using the health policy triangle model to frame the collection and extraction of publicly available information from academic literature search engines, news media databases and websites of national and international organisations, published up until December 2020. We coded and analysed textual data using the thematic framework approach to identify themes, relationships and connections. RESULTS: Four themes underpin the Bangladesh legislative environment on TAPS: (1) engaging international actor interest in TAPS policies, (2) the incremental approach to TAPS policy-making, (3) time-sensitive TAPS monitoring data and (4) innovative TAPS monitoring and policy enforcement system. The findings highlight the role of international actors (such as multinational organisations and donors), tobacco control advocates and the tobacco industry in the policy-making process and the competing agendas they bring. We also outline the chronology of TAPS policy-making in Bangladesh and the existing loopholes and policy changes over time. Lastly, we describe the innovative approaches to TAPS monitoring and policy enforcement in Bangladesh to combat the tobacco industry marketing strategies. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the role of tobacco control advocates as crucial in TAPS policy-making, monitoring and enforcement in LMICs, and identifies good practices for the sustainability of tobacco control programmes. However, it also points out that tobacco industry interference, coupled with increasing pressure on advocates and legislators, may block progress in tobacco endgame approaches.
Original language | English |
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Article number | e069620 |
Number of pages | 11 |
Journal | BMJ Open |
Volume | 13 |
Issue number | 5 |
Early online date | 23 May 2023 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 23 May 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding:AT acknowledges the support of Bloomberg Philanthropies Stopping
Tobacco Organizations and Products project funding (www.bloomberg.org).
Data availability statement:
All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as online supplemental information.
Keywords
- Health policy
- PUBLIC HEALTH
- QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine