WHO for more tobacco taxes in new budget

Sh112 billion: The pre-tax profit made by Tanzania Cigarette Company last year compared with nearly Sh66 billion in 2009   

By Mkinga Mkinga,The Citizen Reporter

Posted  Saturday, May 31  2014 at  08:41

In Summary

• Increasing excise taxes on tobacco is considered to be the most cost-effective tobacco control measure. In Tanzania, expert estimates that over 35 per cent of people smoke tobacco regularly. While Tanzania earns about over Sh80 billion annually from tobacco revenue, more than Sh64 billion is spent to treat tobacco-related cancers alone.

Dar es Salaam. As the world marks the No Tobacco Day today, whose theme is to raise taxes as a deterrent to smoking, there will be no special event to nationally commemorate the day in Tanzania, The Citizen on Saturday has reliably learnt.

 

The day was also not celebrated officially last year except for a meeting that was organised by the anti-tobacco lobby at the University of Dar es Salaam. The Tanzania Tobacco Control Forum (TTCF) will not be doing it today, but plans a related gathering later.

Activists have faulted the government over failure to join the world in the anti-smoking campaign and global efforts to contain the tobacco epidemic. “I am not surprised because Tanzania has been sluggish in implementing the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC)…For example, to date there is no national agency for tobacco control,” said an official of the Tanzania Public Health Association.

Yesterday, a senior official at the ministry, Dr Norman Sabuni, confirmed to The Citizen on Saturday that the government would not be involved in marking the day.

Speaking from Dodoma, he said that like last year, budgetary constraints have deprived the ministry money required to officially commemorate it. “For some time, Tanzania has been marking the day mainly through activities organised by Tanzania Tobacco Control Forum and the ministry of Health and Social Welfare normally issues a statement on the day,” Dr Neema Kileo of the WHO office in Dar es Salaam said.

Dr Sabuni said there would be no statement today because officials of the ministry were busy in Dodoma preparing for the tabling of the budget on Monday.

Dr Kileo said death and disease will go down as tobacco taxes go up. She said, researches have shown that higher taxes are especially effective in reducing tobacco use among lower-income groups and in preventing young people from starting to smoke