Peshawar - A Peshawar-based non-governmental organisation (NGO), and the Provincial Alliance for Sustainable Tobacco Control Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have praised the government’s recent massive increase in Federal Excise duty on cigarette sales.
The organisation praised the price increases in a press release issued on Friday, saying that price increases are the most effective way of discouraging tobacco consumption and demonstrate the government’s commitment to public health.
The recent issuance of a Statutory Regulatory Order (SRO) on February 14, 2023, revised the taxes on locally produced cigarettes, with FED doubled on cigarettes with an initial packaging price exceeding 9,000 per 1,000 cigarettes, to 16,500/- per 1000 cigarettes. This move is expected to generate billions of rupees for the national exchequer while discouraging children from smoking.
According to the statement, raising the price of cigarettes is a recommended measure under the FCTC to reduce tobacco consumption and its harmful effects on health, as it can discourage smoking while also raising funds for public health initiatives.
There is compelling evidence that raising the price of cigarettes is an effective method of reducing tobacco use. People are less likely to start smoking and more likely to quit when the price of cigarettes rises.
