NGO calls for 100% tax increase on tobacco products

The Ghanaian Chronicle

By Naa Bettey Nelson

Friday, May 29, 2009
http://www.ghanaian-chronicle.com/thestory.asp?id=12141&title=NGO%20calls%20for%20100%%20tax%20increase%20on%20tobacco%20products
www.valdgh.blogspot.com

Vision for Alternative Development (VALD), a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) has advised government to make an 100% tax increase in the prices of tobacco products in the country, to make the product unattractive and expensive for children.

The organization said the tobacco industry claimed that high cigarette taxes encouraged smuggling from low tax jurisdiction. Briefing the media in Accra yesterday, the Executive Director (of VALD), Mr. Issah Ali, urged the government to pass the tobacco bill into law, to protect present and future generations from hazardous effects of tobacco use.

He said the bill, when passed, would ban smoking in Public places in Ghana, in accordance with the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Article 8, which encourages parties to “recognize that scientific evidence has unequivocally established that exposure to tobacco smoke causes death, disease and disability.”

He pointed out that VALD was established to promote alternative initiatives and support development at all levels of the society which included advocacy and sensitization on tobacco control and health issues, and supporting community participation in governance.

He pointed that the bill would prohibit the sale of tobacco products in health and educational institutions and places with significant portion of youth clientele.
He explained that tobacco kills close to 5 million people annually and it is projected to kill over10 million smokers and passive smokers by 2030.

He said 70% of death would emerge in developing countries including Ghana, if effective tobacco control measures are not initiated and enforced effectively.

Mr. Issah Ali said that non-smokers exposed to second hand smoke at home or at work increase their heart disease risk by 25-30% and lung cancer risk by at least 20-30%.