WHO Refutes Tobacco Companies’ Claims on Illicit Cigarette Trade in Pakistan
Actual Illicit Trade Figure is 23%, Not as High as Previously Claimed
ISLAMABAD: The World Health Organisation (WHO) has refuted assertions made by multinational tobacco companies about the scale of the illicit cigarette trade in Pakistan, disclosing that the actual figure is 23 per cent.
According to the WHO’s report, titled “Study on Incidence of Illicit Trade of Cigarettes in Pakistan: A Case Study for Islamabad Capital Territory,” 23.1 per cent of the cigarette trade in Pakistan is illicit. Locally produced cigarettes lacking the tax authority’s stamp constitute 10.4 per cent of the total market.
The study further details that 1.9 per cent of cigarette packs bear counterfeit tax stamps, while smuggled cigarettes make up 10.7 percent of total consumption.
Previous research on the illicit trade in Pakistan, conducted before the implementation of the Track and Trace System in July 2022, estimated the illicit market at between 9 and 17 per cent. However, these earlier studies did not account for the prevalence of counterfeit products, the WHO noted.
“The most effective way to reduce tobacco consumption is by increasing the price of tobacco products through higher taxes,” the report states. It highlights that the cigarette industry in Pakistan argues that higher taxes encourage illicit trade, claiming that smokers do not quit but instead purchase cheaper, non-duty-paid cigarettes.
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The WHO counters this narrative by stressing the need to increase tobacco prices through taxation, suggesting that this is crucial for reducing tobacco consumption in the country.
