China is the biggest consumer of tobacco products in the world, with over 320 million smokers. However, there has been very little research on the effectiveness of tobacco control interventions in China and even less sharing of information across the country on what has been done so far. The state is the sole producer, distributor and employer in the tobacco sector, which is economically very important, generating 11% of central government revenues in 2000. There has been little research on the economic implications of tobacco use and control nationally and at provincial level, and so policy makers in provincial and central government have lacked good information on which to base decisions about additional tobacco control measures. To address these pressing needs, this proposal would (1) build capacity among Chinese researchers in the areas of the economics of tobacco control and evaluation of tobacco control interventions and policies; through training and mentoring and working with Chinese researchers to (2) conduct additional needed research on key issues in the economics of tobacco control, such as impact of additional tobacco tax, economic costs of smoking, cost effectiveness of tobacco control intervention; and (3) disseminate widely the results and strengthen dialogue with policy makers in the provincial and central governments of China. This proposed research capacity building project will provide opportunities for collaboration between health economists and health services researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, the World Bank, and three major Chinese universities: Beijing University, Sichuan University, and Fudan University, and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine. This project proposes collaboration between the World Bank and participating universities. The World Bank will contribute its staff time, assist in evaluation of its interventions from Health Project VII. It is anticipated that by the end of this project; China will have a group of solid tobacco control researchers specializing in intervention evaluation and policy related research.
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