LOBBYING AND LEGAL STRATEGY

• Published in: Annals of nutrition and metabolism 2017-10, Vol.71 (Suppl. 2), p.77
• Main Authors: Camarena, Adriana Rocha, Perez, José Alonso Arango, Cruz, Luis Manuel Encarnación
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Beverages; Drinking water; Excise taxes; Federal government; Litigation; Lobbying; NGOs; Nongovernmental organizations; Nutrition; Obesity; Politics; Prevention; Promotion; Public health; Public participation; Public spaces; Schools; Stakeholders; Strategy; Sugar
• ISSN: 0250-6807; 1421-9697
• DOI: 10.1159/000480486

Background and objectives: The lobbying and legal activities for the promotion and approval of the excise tax on Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSBs) in Mexico started in early 2012, as part of a broad advocacy strategy on obesity prevention that included the participation of different stakeholders, including the National Institute of Public Health (research purposes), the non-governmental organization El Poder del Consumidor (communications and awareness purposes, as well as strategic litigation) and the advocacy firm Polithink (design and carrying out of the advocacy and the legislative strategy). The tax is conceived as part of a comprehensive policy agenda on obesity prevention in Mexico, which includes the regulations on child-targeted marketing, front-of-package labeling and school food policy and nutrition, as well as the access to potable water in schools and public spaces. The decision to choose the tax as the first policy to be promoted was based on an analysis of adequate timing, political scenarios, implementation processes, short-term effects in consumption and awareness, and the possibility of creating a strong social and political debate. Methods: The main objective of the lobbying strategy was to position the tax in the political and legislative agendas, by taking into consideration several key elements for the promotion of the tax with the Federal Government, and for the introduction and approval of the tax in Congress. The six key elements of the lobbying strategy were: problem identification; context analysis; stakeholder mapping and engagement; definition of policy needs; communication strategy; and political outreach. The strategy considered a combination of direct lobbying activities performed by Polithink, and advocacy activities performed by civil society organizations and coalitions (such as the ContraPESO Coalition). Results: The lobbying strategy was developed in four stages: (1) The drafting of the bill; (2) The introduction of the bill in Congress; (3) The winning of the debate; (4) and the Voting of the bill in Congress. It is important to highlight that the lobbying activities carried out through these stages were not isolated to the research and communication activities done by the other partners. Hence, it is not coincidence that the launch of some awareness campaigns, or the release of research studies, matched key congressional timings, which supported advocacy strategies. Conclusion: The tax was approved on October 2013 and