Making South-East Asia SAFER from alcohol-related harm: Current status and way forward

Alcohol use is responsible for more than 1 in 20 deaths globally and in the WHO South-east Asia Region. It causes more deaths than those caused by tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and diabetes, each. Notably, more than one in every five deaths from tuberculosis is attributed to alcohol use. The societal costs of alcohol affecting the partners, children, families and communities of drinkers are estimated to be twice those incurred by drinkers themselves. The per capita alcohol consumption has been increasing substantially in the South-East Asia Region since 2000. Bold policy actions and their effective implementation are required to reverse the trends in increasing per capita consumption. WHO launched “SAFER”-an action package prioritizing five high-impact policy action domains. The paper provides the current status of implementation of SAFER policy action package in WHO South-East Asia Region.