In a video published recently on Vimeo and YouTube, the local network of the Global Compact in the Dominican Republic promotes a project called Cigar Family. The project is sponsored by the Cigar Family Charitable Foundation. The two organizations behind this foundation are the tobacco companies J.C. Newman Cigar Company and Tabacalera A. Fuente y Compania. The former is a non-communicating participant in the Global Compact.
In what seems to be a promotional video for the charity, the UN's resident coordinator in the Dominican Republic and a UNDP representative visit the Cigar Family project. The UN Global Compact logo is displayed throughout the video. The Global Compact does not allow tobacco companies to make presentations at any of its global events or to use the Global Compact brand in any other way to raise their profile. The video with the Global Compact logo appears to be an infringement of this rule.
In 2008, the World Health Organization (WHO) criticized the Global Compact for allowing tobacco companies to become members of the Compact. Nevertheless, there are still some large tobacco companies that participate in the Compact, such as Souza Cruz, the Mansour Group and ITC limited.
Officially launched in 2006 by the President of the Republic, the Dominican network of the Compact has not been a success story. According to the Compact's participant database, the network in the Dominican Republic is one of the most inactive local networks in the world. Currently only six companies are registered as active business participants, while 87 companies are listed as inactive and 12 as non-communicating.
This is the video about the Cigar Family project published by the Dominican network of the Compact:



