Book excerpt: This report, the fifth in the series of WHO reports on the global tobacco epidemic, presents a country-level examination of the epidemic and identifies countries that have applied effective tobacco control measures. The number of people worldwide protected by effective tobacco control measures continues to grow, and countries that have adopted these measures at the highest level of achievement can be considered models for action for those countries that have yet to do so. The focus of this report is raising taxes on tobacco, the 'R' component of MPOWER. Time and again, increasing taxes on tobacco products to increase retail prices has been proven to be the most effective and efficient of the best-buy demand reduction measures to reduce tobacco use. And yet it is also the least widely implemented measure.