Public health advocates and experts on Thursday urged the government to reduce the number of cigarette price tiers, introduce a specific tax system and impose more effective taxation on all tobacco products in the national budget for fiscal year 2026–27.
They said such reforms could help reduce tobacco consumption, prevent premature deaths and significantly increase government revenue.
The demands were raised at a press conference titled “Demand for Taxation and Price Increase on Tobacco Products in the Upcoming FY2026–27 Budget for Public Health Protection”, organised by Dhaka Ahsania Mission at the Dhaka Reporters Unity on Thursday.
Speakers at the event proposed reducing the existing four-tier cigarette pricing system to three tiers by merging the low and medium categories.
Under the proposal, the retail prices of a 10-stick cigarette pack would be set at Tk 100, Tk 150 and Tk 200 respectively. They also recommended maintaining the existing 67 percent supplementary duty on all cigarette tiers while imposing a specific tax of Tk 4 per pack.
The speakers further proposed setting the retail price of a 20-stick bidi pack at Tk 30 with a 50 percent supplementary duty.
They also suggested fixing the retail price of 10 grams of zarda at Tk 48 and increasing the price of 10 grams of gul from Tk 25 to Tk 30, alongside a 60 percent supplementary duty.
In addition, they urged the government to continue the existing 15 percent VAT and 1 percent Health Development Surcharge on all tobacco products.
According to the speakers, implementation of the proposed measures could encourage nearly 500,000 adults to quit smoking and discourage more than 372,000 youths from taking up smoking.
They claimed the reforms could prevent the premature deaths of more than 370,000 people in the long run and reduce overall tobacco use prevalence by around 0.5 percentage points.
The proposed measures could also generate nearly Tk 85,000 crore in revenue from the tobacco sector, approximately Tk 44,000 crore higher than the revenue collected in the current fiscal year, they added.
Professor Dr Shafiun Nahin Shimul of the University of Dhaka said cigarette prices in Bangladesh have increased at a much slower rate than essential commodities in recent years.
“Between 2021 and 2023, sugar prices increased by 88.97 percent, potato prices by 86.58 percent, and flour prices by 75.09 percent. In contrast, prices of low-tier cigarettes increased by only 15.38 percent and medium-tier cigarettes by just 6.35 percent,” he said.
He noted that medium-tier cigarettes, which account for the largest consumer base, experienced the lowest price increase, making cigarettes increasingly affordable compared to daily essentials.
General Secretary of Dhaka Reporters Unity Mainul Hasan Sohel said effective tobacco taxation would not only reduce the burden of tobacco-related diseases but also strengthen healthcare financing in the country.
President of the Bangladesh Secretariat Reporters Forum Masudul Haque said around 200,000 people die prematurely every year in Bangladesh from tobacco-related diseases, accounting for nearly 18 percent of total deaths.
The press conference was chaired by Mukhlesur Rahman, deputy director of the Health Sector of Dhaka Ahsania Mission.
Among others present were Shariful Islam, coordinator of the Tobacco Control Project; Marzana Muntaha, coordinator of Ahsania Mission Youth Forum; and Arifur Rahman Tipu, president of the Dhaka Metropolitan Shop Owners Association.
