Tobacco in Pakistan: A Problematic Situation

In Pakistan, tobacco producers have obtained the removal of a tax, allowing them to boost exports. Presented as economic progress by the former, this decision underlines that health interests are not yet a priority on the tobacco issue.[1].

The decision by the Speaker of the Pakistani National Assembly to remove an advance tax on tobacco leaves has led to a boom in exports. Indeed, the quantities of tobacco sold internationally jumped by 151.9% between July 2019 and July 2020, from 268 tons to 675 tons. In value and over the same period, this increase was estimated at 137%, from $910,000 to $2.17 million.

Proximity of industry and decision-making circles in Pakistan

The withdrawal of the advance tax came after Pakistani tobacco farmers lobbied the Speaker of the National Assembly, who is also the head of the National Assembly's Special Committee on Agricultural Produce. The latter's mission is to devise viable policies to boost the agricultural sector and farmers' incomes.

The farmers' delegation notably defended this measure to the President of the National Assembly, emphasizing the sector's capacity for economic development, capable of bringing foreign currency into Pakistan.

A short-term development axis

This decision, although it could result in a short-term increase in income for a certain number of farmers, reflects a lack of vision in perspective on the tobacco issue. It is in fact only understood in terms of its economic dimension, and not as a major public health issue and an obstacle to development for the country. Tobacco is a global factor of impoverishment and tobacco growing, due to the quantities of wood and pesticides it requires, is an unsustainable development axis at the origin of massive deforestation, pollution of land and water tables, while the country is already experiencing serious problems in supplying itself with drinking water.

Continue efforts to combat smoking

Public health organisations, for their part, are calling on the government to continue its efforts to combat smoking. The director general of the Human Development Foundation, Azhar Saleem, said that tobacco consumption was on the rise in the country.

In Pakistan, more than 163,000 people die each year from smoking. The industrial epidemic also comes at a high price for the government: the annual cost of smoking is estimated at 143.2 billion rupees, or more than 720 million euros.

Keywords: Pakistan, tobacco cultivation

©Generation Without Tobacco

[1] Activists urge government to increase tax on tobacco products, The Newspaper's Staff Reporter, September 15, 2020, consulted the same day

National Committee Against Smoking |