Public health experts and physicians on Monday urged the government to significantly increase tobacco product prices in the upcoming FY2026-27 national budget to help reduce the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Bangladesh.
They said nearly 71 percent of annual deaths in the country are caused by NCDs, while tobacco use alone accounts for around 14 percent of NCD-related deaths.
They made the call at a press conference titled "effective tobacco price increase to reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases: physicians' budget proposals for FY2026-27", organised by United Forum Against Tobacco (UFAT) and National Heart Foundation of Bangladesh at National Press Club on Monday.
Prof. Md. Yunusur Rahman chaired the event. Among others, public health expert Dr Mushtaq Hossain, Prof Safiun Nahin Shimul, and Dr Muhammad Sakhawat Hossain spoke at the programme.
Presenting the keynote paper, Dr Aruna Sarkar said tobacco use remains one of the leading risk factors for cancer, heart disease, stroke and chronic respiratory diseases in Bangladesh.
She said around 37.8 million adults in the country currently use tobacco products and nearly 200,000 people die every year from tobacco-related diseases. According to her presentation, the annual economic loss from tobacco-related health and environmental damage is estimated at nearly Tk 87,000 crore, which is more than double the revenue generated from the tobacco sector.
The physicians proposed merging the low- and medium-tier cigarette categories and setting the retail price of a 10-stick cigarette pack at Tk 100. They also recommended imposing a specific supplementary duty of Tk 4 per pack. In addition, they proposed increasing the retail prices of high-tier and premium-tier cigarette packs to Tk 150 and Tk 200 respectively.
Prof Safiun Nahin Shimul said the existing tobacco tax structure in Bangladesh is complex and ineffective from a public health perspective. He noted that the current four-tier cigarette pricing system allows smokers to switch to cheaper brands instead of quitting, thereby reducing the effectiveness of tax measures.
He also observed that the small price gap between low- and medium-tier cigarettes makes tobacco products more affordable for young people and low-income groups. Dr Mushtaq Hossain said implementation of the proposed tax and price measures could both reduce tobacco consumption and generate more than Tk 85,000 crore in revenue, which would be around Tk 44,000 crore higher than the previous fiscal year.
He added that the additional revenue could be utilised to strengthen the healthcare system, improve primary healthcare services and address the growing burden of non-communicable diseases.
