BACKGROUND AND IMPLEMENTATION CHALLENGES: The Global Tobacco Surveillance System (GTSS) is one of the largest public health surveillance systems in the world. This overview will describe the development of the Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS), Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), Tobacco Questions for Surveys (TQS) and Tobacco Questions for Surveys of Youth (TQS-Youth) and how these surveillance systems have adapted and expanded in order to provide data on tobacco use and tobacco control indicators for countries to fulfill their obligations for the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).
INTERVENTION OR RESPONSE: GTSS began in 1999 with the launch of the GYTS. In the following 25 years, tobacco surveillance expanded to include GATS, Tobacco TQS and TQS-Youth. Tobacco indicators that are measured by these surveys include smoked and smokeless tobacco, secondhand smoke exposure at home and various public places, and tobacco advertisement and promotions.
RESULTS AND IMPACT: GTSS has supported over 185 countries in collecting and analyzing tobacco use data. GYTS has been conducted in over 185 countries. GATS has been conducted in 36 countries. TQS has been integrated in over 100 countries. TQS-Youth has been integrated 3 countries. Data from these surveys has helped member states meet their obligations outlined in the WHO FCTC. This data includes over 4 billion adults, including 70% of the world’s adult population who smoke tobacco.
CONCLUSIONS: In the past 25 years, GTSS has grown and provided beneficial tobacco use data for countries around the world. Data from GTSS can be used by countries to monitor tobacco use and related indicators and to evaluate tobacco control policies and interventions.