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Cigarettes cannot be sold at a price higher than the maximum retail price (MRP) mentioned on the cigarette packet.

The health system in Bangladesh is seeing a notable increase in both expenditure and pressure because the illness is affecting a growing number of people throughout the nation.

The National Board of Revenue has found evidence that BATB evaded value-added tax (VAT) and supplementary duty in 2016 by concealing information…

All the products in the country are sold at the maximum retail price mentioned on the packet, but the tobacco companies are not following it in the case of cigarettes and bidis. NBR has ensured that writing the maximum retail price in the pact is binding …

দেশে সবধরনের পণ্য সর্বোচ্চ খুচরা বিক্রয় ‍মূল্যে বিক্রি হলেও সিগারেটের ক্ষেত্রে তা অনুসরণ করছে না উৎপাদনকারী প্রতিষ্ঠানগুলো।

The proposed budget for the financial year 2023-24 has made the sale of cigarettes at the maximum retail price mandatory…

It is necessary to ensure the sale of tobacco products at maximum retail price (MRP) from the coming financial year and impose specific taxes on all types of tobacco products due to increase government revenue and to stop revenue evasion by tobacco companies.

Except for cigarettes and bidis, all the products are sold at the maximum retail price which is mentioned on the packet. The cigarette manufacturing companies are not following it and selling cigarettes at much higher than the maximum retail price across the country. As a result, the government is losing about Tk 20 crore in revenue every day…

বিশ্বব্যাপী তামাক কোম্পানিগুলো তামাক করের প্রভাবকে দুর্বল করার জন্য তামাকজাত দ্রব্যের মূল্য নির্ধারণে বিভিন্ন কৌশল ব্যবহার করছে।  একইসঙ্গে মানুষ যাতে ধূমপান অব্যাহত রাখে সেজন্য তারা সিগারেটের দামে হেরফের করছে। …

Ever since the government took the initiative to revise the Tobacco Control Act, tobacco companies have started various campaigns to dispute the initiative to amend the law. As always, they have started foretelling a drop of revenue if the law is enacted.

Minister of Planning M.A. Mannan MP has commented that the secretaries should leave the board of BATB quickly so that there is no interference in tobacco control and government policies…

If a specific tax is imposed on all types of tobacco products it will play a major role in tobacco control besides increasing the revenue of the government as well…

To undermine the government’s efforts to reform the tobacco control act, cigarette companies are undertaking a range of misleading campaigns.

Bureau of Economic Research (BER), University of Dhaka and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP) send press releases to Bangladeshi media after the most programs. Some of the press releases sent under the project titled ‘Advancing a Sustainable Tobacco Tax System in Bangladesh’ are given below. 1. (English) BATA, BNTTP and BER Press Release 2. (English) […]

Advocate Shamsul Huque Tuku, MP, the newly elected deputy speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad; has said that the tobacco industry tactics hinders the move to amendment to the tobacco control law…

About 22 million people currently consume smokeless tobacco in Bangladesh which is about 58% of total tobacco users!

A discussion meeting was held with journalists on ‘Specific Taxation on Tobacco Products to Protect Public Health’ on Saturday, 27 August 2022 at 11 AM in the conference room of the BNTTP secretariat office.

The government’s revenue stream will expand substantially if the specific taxation system is implemented instead of the current Ad-valorem taxation system on tobacco products.

A 3-day online training session was held for the 9th cohort on ‘Economics of Tobacco and Tobacco Taxation: Public Health Perspective’ from 16th to 18th August 2022 on the online meeting platform ‘Zoom’.

The government is seeking to create awareness among smokers and smokeless tobacco users and offering access to counselling services to help them quit.

A workshop was jointly organized by the Health Economics Unit (HEU), Bureau of Economic Research (BER), and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP) on imposing specific taxation on tobacco products to protect public health.

In its startling figures, the World Health Organization said 600 million trees, 200,000 hectares of land, 22 billion tonnes of water, and 84 million tonnes of carbon dioxide are used to produce tobacco.

A webinar was jointly organized by the Bureau of Economic Research (BER), University of Dhaka, and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco tax Policy (BNTTP) on the outline of the ‘National Tobacco Policy’ drafted by the BER…

Despite decades of efforts, tobacco use continues to be the leading preventable cause of illness and premature death in Canada, killing approximately 48,000 Canadians each year…

The tobacco tax structure proposed in the budget for the fiscal year 2022-23 will not play any role in reducing tobacco use. On the contrary, this tax system will help tobacco companies create new smokers and encourage old smokers to keep on smoking. Continuing to levy taxes on tobacco as a percentage of prices and not imposing …

Honorable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina promised to eliminate tobacco use completely from Bangladesh by 2040 at the South Asia Speaker’s Summit held in 2016. To achieve this goal, she urged formulate a strong tobacco tax policy.

In order to protect the public health of the country, the Honorable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has pledged to eliminate the use of tobacco in Bangladesh completely by the year 2040 at the South Asian Speakers’ Summit held in 2016.

If the tobacco tax rate proposed by the anti-tobacco organizations is imposed to protect public health in the upcoming fiscal year, the government will earn a revenue of around BDT 39,600 crore. Which is BDT 9,200 crores more than the last financial year.

If the proposed tobacco tax is imposed to protect public health in the upcoming fiscal year, the government will earn a revenue of around BDT 39,600 crore.

To protect public health, the Prime Minister announced that it is necessary to amend the existing tobacco control law to implement Tobacco-Free Bangladesh by 2040.

Pregnant women who smoke or are exposed to second-hand smoke are more at risk of having a misscarriage, giving birth early and experiencing stillbirth…

In Bangladesh, 35.3% of adults use some form of tobacco. Due to tobacco-related diseases, 1 lakh 61 thousand people died every year.

Even though all products in the markets are sold at the maximum retail price (MRP) across the country, the manufacturers are not following it in the case of cigarettes and bidis. Cigarette companies are selling cigarettes to retail sellers at MRP, and sellers are then selling cigarettes to general consumers at higher prices. Cigarettes are being sold at a much higher price than the maximum price mentioned on the packet almost everywhere. If it was possible to collect tax on the price customers have to pay in retail shops, the revenue income of the government would have been around Tk 5,000 crore in the current fiscal year.

Members of parliament demanded the introduction of a specific tax system instead of ad-valorem and increase in prices of all tobacco products, reduction of the existing price tire of cigarettes from 4 to 2 and increase in taxes and prices of low tire cigarettes to protect public health…

These issues were discussed by the speakers on Wednesday 23rd February 2022 at a webinar titled ‘Tobacco Tax System, Loss of Government to the Profit of Tobacco Company’ which took place in the online meeting platform Zoom. University of Dhaka’s Bureau of Economic Research and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP) jointly organized the webinar.

Lawmakers, researchers, experts on public health and anti-tobacco activists at a discussion have said that the government must impose specific taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco products to protect the public health and increase the revenue income.

Cigarette price increases are more effective in reducing cigarette demand among poorer people. A recently conducted research study finds that the demand for cigarette responds less than proportionately to changes in cigarette price. Moreover, the study finds that an increase in cigarette price by 10 percent results in a 9 percent decrease of cigarette demand among poorer people compared to 3.9 percent among wealthier people

A study finds that tobacco companies are still flouting the law even six years after rules of printing the graphic health warning on tobacco packets were made mandatory.

The existing Tobacco Control Act will be amended and presented in Parliament very soon with the aim of building a tobacco-free Bangladesh by 2040, said Health Minister Zahid Malek.

Lawmakers passed a long-delayed bill on Thursday banning the import and sale of electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products in Hong Kong

Bureau of Economic Research (BER), University of Dhaka organized a meeting with Health Economics Unit (HEU) & National Tobacco Control Cell (NTCC) on 14 October 2021…

Speakers at a webinar have said that it is necessary to finalise the policy to control tobacco cultivation in the interest of ensuring the health, environment and food security in the country.

In order to build a tobacco-free Bangladesh by 2040, it is important to launch a National Tobacco Control Program (NTCP) this year to ensure greater participation of non-governmental organizations and youth and to strictly control tobacco companies…

Govt should enlist tobacco as addictive drug, says Adhunik. Two anti-tobacco platforms — Progga and Anti-Tobacco Media Alliance (ATMA) — has claimed that tobacco products will become more affordable in the 2021-22 fiscal year.

Although the number of smokers has decreased in Bangladesh over the years, it is not adequate to make the country tobacco-free by 2040, Information Minister Hasan Mahmud has said at a workshop organised by VOICE with the members of Law Reporter’s Forum…

According to the proposals of anti-tobacco organizations, by imposing specific tax on tobacco products the government will be able to generate additional revenue of tk 3,340 crore for the fiscal year 2021-22…

In the proposed budget without bringing any change in the price of lower and middle tier, the 10 sticks cigarette price remains same tk. 39 and tk. 63 as previous year. Moreover there are no changes in the price of biri, jorda and gul also. But, with the increase of per capita income, the inflation and price of regular essential products also increases…

Members of Parliament on Monday requested Health Minister Zahid Malek to amend the existing tobacco control laws in the country.

It will increase the health risk of poor people in a high rate as the lower tier product price remains same. At the same time, it will increase the tobacco related disease and death among them. The country will face huge economic loss due to increase of tobacco related disease and deaths.

Marking the World No Tobacco Day, human rights and research organization VOICE submitted a petition to NBR demanding tobacco tax reform in the upcoming budget.

Economic Research Bureau (BER) of Dhaka University, Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance (BATA) and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP) jointly organized a webinar on `Impact of price and tax on quitting tobacco use’

Tax raise on tobacco would encourage 1.1 million adults to give up smoking. Above all, it would enable Bangladesh to stop untimely death of 390 thousand current smokers…

Around 100 anti-tobacco activists from across the country expressed solidarity virtually to the demand of imposing specific tax on cigarettes and all other tobacco products.

The Tobacco Control & Research Cell (TCRC) and Bangladesh Network For Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTT) arranged a webinar on the occasion of the World No-Tobacco Day, which is observed around the world on May 31 every year.

World No Tobacco Day (31 May), WHO calls on countries to raise taxes on tobacco to encourage users to stop and prevent other people from becoming addicted to tobacco. Based on 2012 data …

Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP), Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance (BATA) and AID Foundation have jointly arranged a press conference demanding specific tax on tobacco products…

Bangladesh Anti Tobacco Alliance (BATA) and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP) on Tuesday (11 May 2021) demanded of the government to impose specific tax on tobacco products from the next fiscal year (FY22) instead of pursuing the existing ad valorem system.

Prices of cigarettes and other tobacco products should be increased through specific taxation to bring the goods beyond people’s purchasing capacity to achieve a tobacco-free Bangladesh…

To achieve a tobacco-free Bangladesh, the prices of cigarettes and other tobacco products should be raised further by imposing more specific taxes, pushing these products beyond the purchasing power of common people, experts said.

The government needs to increase price of tobacco products by imposing tax in the upcoming national budget to contain its use, said speakers at an online discussion yesterday…

BNTTP jointly arranged a webinar with Tobacco Control and Research Cell (TCRC) and Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance (BATA) on `Importance of Standard Packaging Model to Protect Tobacco Tax Evasion in Bangladesh’ on 29 April 2021.

BER and BNTTP has jointly organized a training program on the `Economics of Tobacco and Tobacco Taxation: Public Health Perspective’. These three days long training programs took place from April 27 to 29.

Bureau of Economic Research (BER) and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax policy (BNTTP) jointly arranged a webinar on `Why it is important to impose a specific tax on tobacco products’ on 21 April, 2021.

52 Members of Parliament (MP) on Monday urged the NBR to increase Tobacco Tax in Budget and recommended few proposals regarding this issue.

A significant number of smokeless tobacco (SLT) manufacturers in Bangladesh have managed to slip away from the government’s tax net, anti-tobacco platform Knowledge for Progress said yesterday, referring to a recent study…

A discussion titled ‘Tobacco control to protect public health: Expectations from the media’ organized with Bangladesh Health Reporters Forum held at Fars Hotel in the capital on 31 March.

Some 153 Members of Parliament have urged Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to ban the harmful e-cigarette. The lawmakers under the banner of ‘Bangladesh Parliamentary Forum for Health and Wellbeing’ made the request to the premier through a letter to her.

Domestic and foreign tobacco companies are waging a massive campaign to encourage young people to use tobacco, ignoring existing laws.

Growing various crops was the only source of livelihood for the people of Gorkhana, Chodurkhil, and Haldarchar — three villages in Manikchhari upazila of Khagrachhari where the Halda river originates…

Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax policy (BNTTP), Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax policy (BNTTP), Work for a Better Bangladesh (WBB) Trust and Tobacco Control & Research Cell (TCRC) jointly organized a dialogue meeting on `Tobacco Tax Policy (Draft) Brief Paper’ on 26, January 2021. The meeting was chaired by Saifuddin Ahmed, coordinator of Work for […]

Health experts and anti-tobacco activists at a webinar on Sunday said that there is no alternative to impose ban on electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) to save the young generation of the country from its harmful impact.

Bangladesh has significantly improved its score on cigarette taxation policy, from 0.87 in 2014 to 2.38 in 2018, according to a new global index.

The government loses 600 crore TK a year due to illegal use of stamps and bandrolls, say the speakers. please read the news in Bengali… তামাক কর আদায়ে স্ট্যাম্প ও ব্যান্ডরোল ব্যবহারের বর্তমান দুর্বল পদ্ধতি, নানা সীমাবদ্ধতা ও অবৈধভাবে ব্যবহারের কারণে সরকার প্রতিবছর প্রায় ৮০০ কোটি টাকা রাজস্ব হারাচ্ছে। যেটা তামাক খাত থেকে আয়কৃত রাজস্বের […]

Barrister Rumeen Farhana – a BNP member of parliament (MP) from a reserved seat – has urged all lawmakers to work together to curb tobacco use in the country, and strengthen tobacco control laws by amending them.

Increasing the prices and reducing the affordability of tobacco and tobacco products have been proven to be the most efficient and cost-effective instrument of controlling tobacco consumption. This way, the overall use of tobacco can be reduced and the government’s revenue can be increased manifold.  Owing to the complex and defective tobacco tax system, however, […]

Although BAT’s production has doubled, its profit has increased 5 times. Susnata Sinha, a Special reporter of Jamuna Television published the result.

The importance of youth participation in tobacco tax activities: Speakers at the webinar.

Every year, 1.9 million people die from tobacco-induced heart disease, according to a new brief released on Tuesday by the World Health Organization (WHO), World Heart Federation and the University of Newcastle Australia.

The price of Jarda did not increase as per the budget FY 2020-21, says research results.

BER and BNTTP have jointly organized a training program on the `Economics of Tobacco and Tobacco Taxation: Public Health Perspective’. This three days long training program took place from July 26 to 28. Unlike the previous four cohorts, the 5th cohort of the training program was conducted online because of the current pandemic situation. 21 […]

It is possible to generate an additional Tk11,000 crore in revenue from the tobacco sector by increasing tobacco taxes and prices, which will also reduce tobacco consumption among the people.

Proposals for pricing and taxing tobacco products in the announced budget for the fiscal year 2020-21 will benefit tobacco companies while the government will lose up to Tk11,000 crore in revenue and the public health will be in dire straits.

The government could have earned Tk11,000 crore more had it imposed, in the proposed budget for FY2020-21, an increase in tax and prices of tobacco as per a health ministry recommendation.

An International webinar on ‘Smokeless Tobacco Control In South Asia: Challenges and Opportunities’ held on June 3, 2020 at 4.00 PM on the cloud-based video conferencing tool ‘Zoom’. Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP), Tabinaj and Tobacco Control and Research Cell (TCRC) jointly organized this webinar. Renowned tobacco control experts including Mr. Ashish Kumar […]

The Health Ministry has requested Industries Ministry to order tobacco companies to halt their production, distribution and sales amid the coronavirus pandemic.

According to WHO, use of tobacco makes people more vulnerable to Covid-19 infection as they touch their mouth and face more often. Considering the severe detrimental effects of tobacco and its active role in deteriorating coronavirus crisis, 100 eminent citizens of the country have called for a temporary ban on the marketing and sale of all tobacco products during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic to protect public health.

A webinar on ‘Imposing Specific Tax on Tobacco Products to Recoup the Economic Losses for Coronavirus’ was held on April 27, 2020 at 11 AM on the cloud-based video conferencing tool ‘Zoom’. Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance (BATA) and Bangladesh Network for Tobacco Tax Policy (BNTTP) had jointly organized the webinar. The renowned political leader and Parliament […]

A consultation meeting held on ‘Draft Tobacco Tax Proposal’ on 16 March 2020 at the Bureau of Economic Research (BER) Conference Room, Art Faculty Building, University of Dhaka. The BER organized this meeting with the support of The Union. The purpose of the meeting was to bring together public health experts to share the draft […]

A knowledge sharing meeting held on ‘Tobacco Tax Policy’ on 18 February 2020 at the Bureau of Economic Research (BER) Conference Room, Art Faculty Building, University of Dhaka. The BER organized this meeting with the support of The Union. The purpose of the meeting was to bring together economists, health economists and tobacco economists to […]

A proposal will be placed before Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to withdraw Bangladesh government’s shares from an international tobacco company, Jatiya Sangsad Deputy Speaker Advocate Fazle Rabbi Miah said…

A workshop held on ‘Economics of Tobacco and Tobacco Taxation: Public Health Perspectives’ on 9 November 2019

A press conference was held on 16th April, 2019 at VIP hall of National Press Club demanding specific taxation on tobacco product as well as fix the cigarette price from four to two tier. Bureau of Economic research (BER), University of Dhaka; Bangladesh Cancer Society and Bangladesh Anti-Tobacco Alliance (BATA) jointly organized the program.

Md. Asadul Islam Health Secretary instructed the Health Economics Unit of Ministry of Health to develop a tobacco tax recommendation in the view of protecting public health for the next financial year.  He asked NTCC to organize a dialogue with NBR on the base of this year tobacco tax recommendation prepared by tobacco control experts.  […]

Anti-tobacco campaigners and economists yesterday demanded that the government, considering the growth of people’s purchasing capacity and per capita income, impose higher tax on tobacco products to make Bangladesh tobacco-free by 2040…

Shankar Ranjan Saha, Additional Divisional Commissioner (General) of Chittagong division declared in a speech that tobacco control issue would be included in monthly coordination meeting’s agenda,

Anti-tobacco activists urged for ensuring accountability and transparency of all discussion with tobacco companies and imposing higher tax on all tobacco products.

Bangladesh is one of the countries where tobacco products are cheaper. Tobacco is not a basic commodity, rather it is a unhealthy luxury product and this is a product that brings death for its consumer. So, to discourage the use of such products and to improve the public health, it is necessary to impose high […]

Non-Communicable Diseases Control (NCDC), Directorate General Health Services (DGHS) organized a consultative workshop on “Tobacco Free Health Care Facilities Implementation Guidelines”

The government has drafted a tobacco cultivation control policy that seeks to bar companies from encouraging farmers to grow the health hazardous crop…

As part of its efforts to bring tobacco consumption to zero by 2040, the government has drafted a policy to inspire tobacco farmers to go for alternatives crops…

All police station of  Bangladesh are smoke free. Bangladesh is one of the countries among the low and middle income sectors to have the privilege to create smoke-free workplace for such a big froce. Police-station is government ofice. Many non smoker including woman and children come here for various services.