Brussels, 15 September 2022: the Board of the Smoke Free Partnership (SFP) is delighted to announce that Lilia Olefir has been appointed as SFP Director.

Consequently, Interim Director Antonella Cardone will step down. The Board is grateful to Antonella Cardone to have transitioned SFP to today.

Before joining SFP as Policy and Communications Manager, from 2017, Lilia worked as Executive Director of Advocacy Centre “LIFE”. She helped to further build the leadership of “LIFE” in the European and global tobacco control arena. Lilia and the “LIFE” team worked on passing the law on TPD that was adopted in 2021, conducted successful advocacy campaigns on the passage of the 7-year annual tobacco tax increases, tax harmonization across product categories, and led mass media campaigns to support policy changes in Ukraine.

SFP President Birgit Beger, “The SFP team has been working tirelessly during the transition period and has the competence, confidence, and strength to move SFP to the next level under Lilia’s leadership.  With the tobacco tax policy being high on the political agenda, the SFP Board looks forward to continuing the strong role SFP plays in European tobacco control policy.”

SFP Director Lilia Olefir, “I am excited and grateful for the trust put into me to lead SFP. I have been working alongside SFP and its Coalition in the past, and I am looking forward to strengthening our advocacy work on the revision of the tobacco control directives to  achieve Tobacco-Free Generation with SFP at the heart of Europe and European policy making.”