A billboard discouraging smoking displayed on Monivong Boulevard in 2015. Post Staff
The World Health Organisation (WHO) in Cambodia called for more action to combat the spread of tobacco use in order to protect the next generation.
To mark “World No Tobacco Day” on May 31 this year, WHO used “smoking cessation” as its theme because smoking has been linked to an increase in disease severity and deaths among hospitalised Covid-19 patients.
WHO said the use of tobacco causes deaths, economic losses and contributes to environmental degradation – all of which poses a serious threat to sustainable development.
It said approximately 2.4 million Cambodians – or 22 per cent of the population aged 15 and older – use some form of tobacco and are at a substantially increased risk of disease, early death and impoverishment.
A WHO report said that each year tobacco causes 15,000 deaths, a third of which were among the poorest people in Cambodia.
As a result, Cambodia suffers annual economic loss of 2.7 trillion riel ($663 million), which is equivalent to three per cent of the country’s GDP – all due to tobacco use.
“Scale up tobacco taxes to at least 75 per cent of the retail price, with periodic increases to outpace inflation and income growth.
“Allocate part of the tobacco tax revenues to tobacco control and poverty relief measures, such as universal health coverage and supporting tobacco farmers and workers to switch to alternative livelihoods, and other social protection schemes,” the report said.
WHO also called on stakeholders to raise awareness among the public and policymakers about the true cost of tobacco and the dangers it poses, especially among low-income populations.
“Smoking is associated with increased severity of disease and death in hospitalised Covid-19 patients and tobacco taxation plays a critical role in supporting universal health coverage and social protections.
“Stronger tobacco control can help reduce Cambodia’s vulnerability and enhance its resilience in future health emergencies,” WHO said.
Ministry of Economy and Finance spokesman Meas Soksensan previously told The Post that the decision to raise tariffs on tobacco products would depend on the results of a more detailed study and that the government had already carefully studied the tariffs on the products in the past.
He said the finance ministry had paid close attention to the control of tobacco products in the country as stakeholders have made these issues a priority for discussion.
“We have met many times to do a comprehensive assessment, because [devising and implementing] tax policy is not easy. [Raising taxes] has its pros and cons,” Soksensan said.
Mom Kong, executive director of the NGO Cambodia Movement for Health, said if Cambodia would raise taxes on tobacco products it would help support people to successfully quit smoking, as raising tobacco taxes can lead smokers to reduce their consumption or quit smoking completely.
“They will smoke less or quit completely, leading to a reduction in the number of deaths, disabilities and illnesses from tobacco use.
“In addition, the increase in tobacco taxes gives the government additional tax revenues to be used for disease prevention, especially the prevention and treatment of Covid-19,” he said.
