In Turkmenistan, a goal of total eradication of smoking

In Turkmenistan, smoking in public spaces has become an offense punishable by fines, as part of a strict anti-smoking policy.[1]. Since 2022, the authorities of this highly closed and autocratic Central Asian country have been aiming to make the country the first "tobacco-free state" by the end of 2025. This ambition was set by former President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, who promotes a healthy lifestyle by strictly implementing WHO-recommended measures, combined with authoritarian displays of force. According to the WHO, only 4% of Turkmens use tobacco, one of the lowest prevalence rates in the world.

Restricted access to tobacco due to high prices and anti-smoking measures

Despite the ban on sales in public stores, some smokers stock up at private kiosks, such as Meilis's in the capital Ashgabat, which sells cigarettes imported from other neighboring Central Asian countries, such as Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, as well as from the Middle East, such as Iran.

The price of a pack ranges from 50 to 170 Turkmen manats (€12 to €42), and individual cigarettes cost between 2 and 5 manats (€0.49 to €1.23). This can represent up to 11 TP3T of the average monthly salary, which was around 1,500 manats (€369) in 2018, according to the latest available data.

However, estimating the real price of cigarettes by consumers and comparing them with other countries is complicated by the existence of two exchange rates, one official used by the state to control the currency, and the other real from the black market, which is six times weaker, which illustrates the considerable gap between official statistics and the real purchasing power of the inhabitants.

The Turkmen authorities are banking on strong measures to reduce smoking: increasing the legal smoking age (since 2022, it has been illegal to sell tobacco to anyone under 21 and for anyone under 21 to buy it)[2]), Limits on imported quantities (maximum two packs), high customs duties, a ban on smoking in almost all public places, including private vehicles when parked in public parking lots, and fines of up to 200 Turkmen manats (€49). Free smoking cessation centers have been set up by the Ministry of Health.

Most of these measures are also recommended by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which Turkmenistan ratified on 13 May 2011.

Central Asia between tough tobacco control and industry interference

This policy is part of a context of power passed down from father to son between Gurbanguly and Serdar Berdymukhamedov. In 2023, the current president ordered a " uncompromising struggle » against tobacco, conducted as in other aspects of Turkmen political life in a very authoritarian manner, with smokers shown on television publicly apologizing and giving up hookah or contraband cigarettes. Public events, including the symbolic destruction of cigarettes accompanied by artistic performances, are regularly organized.

Furthermore, the authorities announced in July 2025 a new action plan to combat alcohol consumption by 2028, thus expanding their public health policy to other addictive substances.

In other Central Asian countries such as Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, where regulatory frameworks are weaker and prevention measures less developed than in Turkmenistan, tobacco manufacturers set up tobacco production factories and interfere in economic and social development, with the complicity of local authorities. In doing so, manufacturers prevent these countries from progressing and even risk weakening the progress made internationally in health.

On the contrary, Kyrgyzstan, which like Turkmenistan has followed the WHO recommendations for tobacco control, announced in June 2025 commit to a major strengthening of its anti-smoking policy by announcing a significant increase in taxes on tobacco products, with the aim of reducing their accessibility, particularly among young people, as well as a ban from 1^er July 2025 on the sale of electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco.

©Generation Without Tobacco

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[1]AFP, In Turkmenistan, the relentless fight to "eradicate" smoking, France 24, published on August 20, 2025, consulted the same day

[2]Turkmen Portal, Turkmenistan raises legal age for selling tobacco products to 21, published November 30, 2022, accessed August 20, 2025

National Committee Against Smoking |