Ladies and gentlemen:
One out of three smokers in the world lives in the Western Pacific Region — for a total of 430 million smokers in all.
Half of the men in the Region smoke. And as a result, half of all women and children are regularly exposed to dangerous second-hand smoke. Every 30 seconds a tobacco-related disease kills someone in the Region.
To combat these dismal statistics, the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific has developed strategies every five years for the past two decades.
Since 2005 when the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control came into force, regional plans have focused on ways to intensify, solidify and fast track implementation of the framework convention.
Our Region is fully committed to battling tobacco use on all fronts. We continue to be the only WHO region in which 100% of eligible Parties have ratified the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
In fact, the regional action plan for the next five years is much more than a strategy. It is a road map of how to work with Member States and partners to build on achievements while accelerating progress against tobacco.
Our gathering today reinforces this commitment.
We must tackle new challenges head on — whether they involve new laws, new taxes or new products, such as the growing popularity of electronic cigarettes.
We are on the right track.
Australia continues to lead the way with plain packaging laws — while its neighbour New Zealand is pushing to become a tobacco-free country by 2020.
In June, one of the world's largest cities, the Chinese capital of Beijing made all indoor public places smoke free. The Government also put tougher enforcement measures in place.
For the first time, Cambodia recently passed a comprehensive national tobacco control law.
Viet Nam has introduced graphic health warnings on cigarette packs, and the Philippines will soon follow suit.
In the Republic of Korea, the Government has increased taxes to effectively double the price of a pack of cigarettes. Experts estimate that the price hike will reduce cigarette sales by 20%.
Of course, we must be prepared for the efforts of the tobacco industry to counteract these life-saving measures in the Region and globally.
Now more than ever, international solidarity is essential to confront the challenges of tobacco and reverse its harmful effects.
As always, we must keep the discussion focused on saving lives — and strengthening hopes for a healthier future for the Region's 1.8 billion people.
I wish you a productive meeting and a pleasant stay in Manila.
Thank you.