PAKISTAN is believed to have the highest rate of tobacco consumption in the whole South Asia region, ranking seventh globally, with 23.9 million adult smokers and tobacco-users. The tobacco sector is one of the major sources of national revenue as some 64 billion cigarettes were consumed in the country in 2023 alone. The revenue generated from the tobacco sector in 2023-24 amounted to Rs298 billion compared to Rs179 billion in the preceding fiscal.

It has been estimated that about 163,600 persons using tobacco die every year in the country, and the health of millions of people, including those having exposure to second-hand smoke, remains at risk. Smoking is the single largest cause of a number of lethal diseases, including cancer, tuberculosis, asthma, cardiac ailments and a variety of infections. In fact, smoking is the fifth highest risk factor for death and disability combined in global terms.

Unfortunately, the federal government always comes up with half-baked steps to address the situation that have failed time and again to yield the desired results. Seemingly due to the huge revenue being earned, the government remains insensitive and indifferent to the colossal hazards of smoking that has reached alarming levels and is, in fact, continuing to grow in the country.

According to government claims, the demand for cigarettes has gone down owing to the recent major increase in taxation. That being so, there is every reason to increase the tax even further.

The government needs to come up with an effective strategy to control the menace of smoking in Pakistan rather drastically. It has been estimated that smoking-related illnesses and deaths cost Pakistan around Rs700 billion annually with respect to economic and health impacts. This is almost 1.4 per cent of the national gross domestic product (GDP).

Hussain Ahmad Siddiqui
Islamabad

Published in Dawn, May 31st, 2025