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Tag: Bangladesh

  • Bangladesh Officials Meet to Stop Tobacco Use, Tax Evasion 

    Bangladesh Officials Meet to Stop Tobacco Use, Tax Evasion 

    Yesterday (March 18), National Board of Revenue (NBR) chairman Md Abdur Rahman Khan said Bangladesh was considering the introduction of a QR code system band-roll for the tobacco sector to prevent tax evasion. Speaking at a pre-budget meeting with the Anti-Tobacco Media Alliance (ATMA), he said that high taxes on tobacco products have created a huge amount of illicit cigarettes entering the country, thus depriving the NBR of due revenue.

    The chairman said some bidi companies use counterfeit band-rolls to avoid paying taxes in the national exchequer.

    “Even they bring those band-rolls from abroad after printing in there,” he said. The NBR chairman put emphasis on establishing a cashless society to stop tax evasion.

    The ATMA argued cigarette prices in the country were too low, and that having a four-tier price system (low, medium, high, and premium) has rendered the tobacco price and tax measures less effective. It proposed merging the low and medium categories.

  • Foreign Company Investing $8.2 Million for Tobacco Processing Machinery in Bangladesh

    Foreign Company Investing $8.2 Million for Tobacco Processing Machinery in Bangladesh

    Lee’s Tobacco Machinery Company Limited signed an agreement yesterday (February 3) to invest $8.32 million into the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (Bepza) to manufacture tobacco processing machinery. According to a press release, the investment from the UAE- and Singapore-owned company is expected to create 92 jobs for Bangladeshi nationals.

    Li Meng, chairman of Lee’s Tobacco Machinery, emphasized his commitment to transferring technical expertise to local workers, thereby building a skilled workforce in machinery manufacturing.

    “This milestone underscores our commitment to diversifying export-oriented industries,” Major General Abul Kalam Mohammad Ziaur Rahman, executive chairman of Bepza said. “We anticipate further investments in machinery production, which will contribute to the broader industrial landscape of Bangladesh.”

  • Bangladesh to Ban E-cigarette Imports

    Bangladesh to Ban E-cigarette Imports

    Bangladesh will ban the import of e-cigarettes and related products, reports bdnews24.

     According to a statement issued by the cabinet division, the health services division proposed to take urgent measures to ban the import of all products tied to the electronic nicotine delivery systems or e-cigarettes “to protect public health and keep future generations safe.”

     After the discussion, it was decided that e-cigarettes will be included in the list of banned products in the import policy order of the ministry of commerce.

  • Tobacco Firms Object to New Tobacco Rules

    Tobacco Firms Object to New Tobacco Rules

    Image: Bilal Ulker

    Tobacco companies have objected to reforms to Bangladesh’s tobacco law proposed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, reports BDNews24.

    In a letter addressed to the law and finance ministries, BAT and Japan Tobacco outlined their reservations and stressed the possibility of loss of government revenue due to the proposed revisions.

    However, according to the National Board of Revenue, tobacco revenues rose by 17.97 percent in fiscal 2005–2006 and 37.52 percent in fiscal 2006–2007 after the Smoking and Using of Tobacco Products (Control) Act passed in 2005.

    Following a 2013 amendment, tobacco revenues rose by 25.51 percent in the following fiscal years.

    A.B.M. Zubair, executive director of the anti-smoking group PROGGA, urged officials to ignore the tobacco companies’ objections. “The health ministry’s initiative to strengthen the existing tobacco control law aims at protecting the nonsmokers from secondhand smoke and shielding the youth from tobacco’s harmful effects,” he was quoted as saying.

    “Therefore, the draft amendment must be passed immediately, undeterred by the ill tactics of the tobacco companies.”

  • ‘Tobacco Too Cheap’

    ‘Tobacco Too Cheap’

    Photo: RODWORKS

    The tobacco tax proposed in Bangladesh’s 2024–2025 budget will make tobacco products cheaper and more affordable, according to critics.

    According to the Daily Sun, health groups believe the proposal will encourage youth to use tobacco products, leading to an increase in tobacco-related deaths and illnesses. “Consequently, government expenditure on public health will rise,” the PROGGA and ATMA health groups wrote in a statement. “The proposed budget will also result in the government losing the opportunity to earn an additional BDT10,000 crore [850.44 million] in revenues.”

    The statement notes that the retail price increase is minimal. “This means the hike per stick is only BDT0.50 (11.11 percent). The supplementary duty has been raised by 2 percent from the existing 58 percent to 60 percent.”

    “It should be noted that, very recently, the third report of Tobacconomics Cigarette Tax Scorecard has revealed a grim picture of the affordability of cigarettes in Bangladesh. Bangladesh scored 1.13 out of 5. The country’s score in the previous report was 2.38,” the statement said.

    “The retail price as well as the [supplementary duty] imposed on the low-tier cigarettes, which holds 75 percent of cigarette market share, has seen a very negligible change. We demand that the government set the retail price at least BDT60 and [supplementary duty] 63 percent so that it reduces the affordability of cigarettes, safeguards the youth and increases the revenue of the government manifold,” said PROGGA Executive Director ABM Zubair.

  • Yields Up in Bangladesh

    Yields Up in Bangladesh

    Photo: Tobacco Reporter archive

    Tobacco yields per hectare in Bangladesh have increased more than 20 percent over the past five years thanks to improved agricultural practices, reports The Daily Star.

    In 2018–2019, growers harvested an average of 2.04 tons per hectare. By the 2022–2023 season, the figure has increased to 2.46 tons per hectare, according to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE). In 2009–2010, per-hectare production was only 1.41 tons, according to World Bank data, which means per-hectare tobacco production has gone up by about 73 percent in 14 years.

    The gain has been achieved by the introduction of high-yielding varieties and the application of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, according to experts.

    Tobacco is a major cash crop in Bangladesh, the world’s 12th largest tobacco grower as of 2020, according to the University of Bath. In 2022–2023, the country grew 65,227 tons of tobacco on 26,475 hectares, representing roughly 1 percent of the total arable land in the country, DAE data show.

    The domestic tobacco industry generated more than BDT325.02 billion ($2.77 billion) in revenue from cigarette sales in the most recent fiscal year, an 8 percent increase from the previous year, according to NBR data. Bangladesh also exports a significant volume of unmanufactured tobacco. In 2022, Euromonitor International estimated the Bangladeshi tobacco market to be worth nearly BDT420 billion.

    According to a study by the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh, tobacco farmers earn around 30 percent more than nontobacco farmers. The return from tobacco is about 18.6 percent higher than that from rice and about 33 percent higher than that from jute.

    Critics blame tobacco production for its impact on soil, water and air. According to the World Health Organization, each cigarette emits nearly 14 grams of CO2 over its life cycle. Producing 300 cigarettes requires about one tree for curing leaf and making cigarette papers. In the case of Bangladesh, tobacco farming accounts for over 30 percent of annual deforestation, according to a study by PATH Canada.

  • High Leaf Prices Luring Growers in Bangladesh

    High Leaf Prices Luring Growers in Bangladesh

    Photo: Taco Tuinstra

    High prices have been attracting more growers to tobacco production in Bangladesh’s Lalmonirhat District despite reservations about the crop within the Department of Agriculture, reports The Financial Express.

    While tobacco is a notoriously laborious crop, farmers say its relatively low cost of production combined with the prevailing strong global demand make it financially more attractive than many other crops.

    According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), farmers have cultivated tobacco on nearly 10,000 hectares of land in five administrative regions of the Lalmonirhat District, but farmers’ sources claim the figure to be higher.

    “We are always motivating farmers not to cultivate tobacco,” said DAE Deputy Director Shaikhul Arefin. “But farmers are doing it only for good price. In recent years, maize farming has taken the place of tobacco farming in many areas. If fair prices can be ensured for other traditional crops, tobacco farming will reduce gradually.”

  • Bidi Workers Demand Better Conditions

    Bidi Workers Demand Better Conditions

    Photo: Brandy Brinson

    During a public meeting in Rangpur, Bangladesh, representatives of the Bidi Workers Federation presented several demands for improving their working conditions, reports the Daily Sun.

    Among other things, they want multinationals to increase the price of low-end cigarettes from BDT45 ($0.38) to BDT65 per pack and the government to close down illegal bidi factories. The bidi workers also demanded a halt to “the brokering” of BAT.

    Rangpur Mayor Mostafizar Rahman, who also spoke at the gathering, urged the government to protect the bidi industry from “the conspiracies of international companies.”

    He highlighted that approximately 2 million workers across the country earn their livelihood by working in bidi factories. Rahman advocated for wage increases, the withdrawal of duties on bidi products and for the bidi industry to be declared a cottage industry, a designation that would give companies operating in this sector access to low-interest loans and subsidies on raw materials, among other benefits.

    A recent survey revealed that many bidi workers in Bangladesh are dissatisfied with their working conditions.

  • Bangladesh Urged to Raise Cigarette Prices

    Bangladesh Urged to Raise Cigarette Prices

    Photo: Shahadat222

    Anti-tobacco organizations are urging Bangladesh to increase cigarette prices in fiscal year 2024–2025, reports The Business Post.

    Even as the prices of essential goods have soared, cigarette prices have remained comparatively stable in Bangladesh. Over the past five fiscal years, the price of low-tier cigarettes has increased by only BDT10 ($0.09), averaging an increase of BDT2 per year. Since 2019–2020, the price of such cigarettes has increased only once, by BDT1.

    Critics say the failure to adjust cigarette prices in line with inflation has made smoking more accessible and attractive to low-income groups. Low-tier cigarettes now account for 80 percent of the cigarette market.

    Experts have suggested raising the price of a 10-stick pack of low-tier cigarettes from BDT45 to BDT60. Aligning prices with inflation, they suggest, would increase government revenue by approximately BDT100 billion.

    “Low-income individuals are the most affected by malnutrition,” said Nasrin Sultana, a professor at the Institute of Health Economics at Dhaka University. “Increasing the price of low-tier cigarettes would reduce the number of smokers in this demographic. This would not only decrease health risks but also enhance revenue flow even amid economic downturns.”

  • Bidi Rollers Dissatisfied With Working Conditions

    Bidi Rollers Dissatisfied With Working Conditions

    Photo: Brandy Brinson

    Many bidi rollers in Bangladesh are dissatisfied with their conditions, reports the Daily Sun.

    Eighty-four percent of participants in a study conducted by the Development Organization of the Rural Poor (DORP) indicated they want to change employment due to health hazards of the tobacco.

    At the same time, 95 percent of the surveyed bidi workers expressed dissatisfaction with their wages while 61 percent complained about the workload.

    The report, titled Study Report on Bidi Workers’ Livelihood in Tangail District-2023, was presented by DORP Deputy Executive Director Mohammad Zobair Hasan at the Jatiya Press Club in the Dhaka.

    “We explored the common health hazards experienced by the participants and found that the majority of them suffered from cough and sneeze while 17.1 percent suffered from abdominal pain/swelling and chest pain or gas,” Zobair Hasan said.

    Despite the reported concerns, 95 percent of survey participants indicated that they incurred no healthcare expenses over the past 12 months.