Higher tobacco taxes may prevent deaths, increase revenue: PPRC
The policy suggests merging the existing low and medium cigarette price tiers and setting a unified minimum retail price of Tk100 per 10-stick pack
The Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC) has urged the government to introduce stronger tobacco tax measures in the 2026–27 fiscal year national budget, saying they could improve public health outcomes while significantly increasing revenue.
The proposals were presented at a press conference titled "Pre-Budget Press Conference for FY2026–27: Tobacco Tax Policy for Protecting Health & Raising Revenue" at the National Press Club in Dhaka today (19 April).
The policy suggests merging the existing low and medium cigarette price tiers and setting a unified minimum retail price of Tk100 per 10-stick pack. It also recommends a uniform specific excise tax of Tk4 per 10-stick pack across all price tiers.
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The framework was jointly developed by Economics for Health, the World Health Organization, and the Institute of Health Economics (IHE) at the University of Dhaka.
Presenting the keynote, IHE director and Professor Shafiun N Shimul said effective implementation could help around 5,00,000 adults quit smoking and prevent over 3,72,000 young people from starting tobacco use. He added that the reforms could prevent more than 370,000 premature deaths and reduce overall tobacco prevalence by about 0.5 percentage points.
He also said the measures could generate over Tk85,000 crore in revenue, an increase of Tk44,000 crore compared to the previous fiscal year.
Syed Md Akram Hussain, chairman of Clinical Oncology, said the economic burden of tobacco-related non-communicable diseases is far higher than current tax earnings from tobacco products. He added that tobacco taxes have not kept pace with rising income and inflation.
PPRC executive chairman Hossain Zillur Rahman said higher tobacco prices do not necessarily reduce revenue, challenging a common policy perception.
"Evidence shows that price increases discourage youth from starting smoking," he said.
He also criticised the recent removal of a ban on e-cigarettes in an ordinance, warning it could mislead young people.
