HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS REGISTER		Author Keyword(s) Vol Page [Advanced]

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Web-only Tables Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this link to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Add article to my folders Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Gilmore, A B Articles by McKee, M Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Gilmore, A B Articles by McKee, M

Tobacco and transition: an overview of industry investments, impact and influence in the former Soviet Union

European Centre on Health of Societies in Transition, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK

Correspondence to:
Dr A Gilmore
European Centre on Health of Societies in Transition, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK; anna.gilmore{at}lshtm.ac.uk

Objectives: To quantify the contribution the tobacco industry has made to foreign direct investment (FDI) in the former Soviet Union (FSU) as an indicator of its political and economic leverage; to explore the impact this has had on production capacity and tobacco control in the region.

Design: Data on industry investment and its impact on cigarette production capacity were collated from industry journals, reports, and websites. Data on total FDI were obtained from the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development.

Results: By the end of 2000, transnational tobacco companies (TTCs) had invested over US$2.7 billion in 10 countries of the FSU. Tobacco money as a proportion of FDI varies from 1% to over 30% in Uzbekistan. Cigarette production capacity in the factories receiving investments tripled from 146 to 416 billion cigarettes per annum and the TTCs’ market share has increased from nothing to between 50–100% in the markets in which they invested. Findings suggest that the effectiveness of national tobacco control measures corresponds broadly to the nature of the political and economic transition in each country and the size of industry investment, which is determined in part by the political context. Thus more effective measures tend to be seen in democratic states with smaller or no industry investments while the least effective measures are seen in highly centralised, one party states with high levels of industry investment or those with limited governmental capacity.

Conclusions: The entry of the TTCs at a time of major political and economic change left the FSU particularly vulnerable to industry influence. This influence was enhanced by the industry’s significant contribution to FDI, their ability to take over existing state monopolies in all but the largest countries, and the lack of democratic opposition.

Abbreviations: BAT, British American Tobacco; EBRD, European Bank of Reconstruction and Development; FDI, foreign direct investment; FSU, former Soviet Union; IMF, International Monetary Fund; TTCs, transnational tobacco companies

Keywords: former Soviet Union; tobacco industry; transition

This article has been cited by other articles:

				A. Gilmore, J. Collin, and J. Townsend Transnational Tobacco Company Influence on Tax Policy During Privatization of a State Monopoly: British American Tobacco and Uzbekistan Am J Public Health, November 1, 2007; 97(11): 2001 - 2009. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				F. Perlman, M. Bobak, A. Gilmore, and M. McKee Trends in the prevalence of smoking in Russia during the transition to a market economy Tob. Control, October 1, 2007; 16(5): 299 - 305. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. B Gilmore, M. McKee, and J. Collin The invisible hand: how British American Tobacco precluded competition in Uzbekistan Tob. Control, August 1, 2007; 16(4): 239 - 247. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M Bobak, A Gilmore, M McKee, R Rose, and M Marmot Changes in smoking prevalence in Russia, 1996-2004. Tob. Control, April 1, 2006; 15(2): 131 - 135. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. B Gilmore, J. Collin, and M. McKee British American Tobacco's erosion of health legislation in Uzbekistan BMJ, February 11, 2006; 332(7537): 355 - 358. [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. Kralikova, E. Podmaniczky, H. Stypulkowska-Misiurewicz, E. Kavcova, A. Veryga, and T. Muller Making the transition to action BMJ, July 23, 2005; 331(7510): 191 - 192. [Full Text] [PDF]

				A B Gilmore and M McKee Exploring the impact of foreign direct investment on tobacco consumption in the former Soviet Union Tob. Control, February 1, 2005; 14(1): 13 - 21. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. McKee and E. Nolte Lessons from health during the transition from communism BMJ, December 18, 2004; 329(7480): 1428 - 1429. [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. Gilmore, J. Pomerleau, M. McKee, R. Rose, C. W. Haerpfer, D. Rotman, and S. Tumanov Prevalence of Smoking in 8 Countries of the Former Soviet Union: Results From the Living Conditions, Lifestyles and Health Study Am J Public Health, December 1, 2004; 94(12): 2177 - 2187. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A B Gilmore and M McKee Moving East: how the transnational tobacco industry gained entry to the emerging markets of the former Soviet Union--part II: an overview of priorities and tactics used to establish a manufacturing presence Tob. Control, June 1, 2004; 13(2): 151 - 160. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]