The International Institute of Legislative Affairs (ILA) has poked holes into the Finance Act 2021, saying some changes in the law will favour tobacco businesses. The Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) whose work is in policy and research argues that while the government is mandated to make laws that discourage tobacco intake, some aspects of the Act...
Misinformation and attacks from well-funded international non-government organizations are among the key obstacles to the adoption of tobacco harm reduction (THR) and mitigation of deaths from smoking in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), according to health policy experts. Representatives from countries like India, Ukraine, Kenya, and Mexico enumerated the factors that are hindering LMICs from...
A proposal by the National Treasury to impose high excise duty on nicotine pouches is likely to make this alternative to smoking unaffordable to most Kenyan smokers. In his Budget Statement presented to Parliament on June 10, National Treasury and Planning CS Ukur Yatani had set the new tax at Sh5,000 per kilogramme. The net...
In Summary •Tax and price policies are known to be the most effective measures for deterring initiation of and continuous use of harmful products such as tobacco and nicotine products- also known as sin tax. •As we adopt fiscal measures on the emerging nicotine products, it is important to maintain and actually improve the fiscal measures...
In the budget statement on June 10, 2021, Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury Ukur Yatani noted that innovations in the tobacco industry have led to the introduction of new nicotine delivery products, such as Lyft. Yatani said: “These new products do not fall in the classification of tobacco products existing in the Excise Duty Act...
Manufacturers of tobacco products have been castigated for not providing expressive messages, clearly indicating health dangers posed by smoking on their various advertisements and products. The Murang’a County Health Promotion Officer, Mr Danson Mwangi, said tobacco products should have an elaborate message spelling out dangers associated with smoking. Mwangi observed that the message, ‘Tobacco smoking is harmful...
The Kenya Tobacco Control Alliance accused the Lyft manufacturer, BAT, of trying to amend laws to suit its 'highly addictive' narcotic product. The Kenya Tobacco Control Alliance has asked the government to ensure the pouches are not allowed into the Kenyan market if the manufacturer is not ready to follow the...
British American Tobacco (BAT) has lamented plans by Kenya’s Health ministry to classify its nicotine pouches as tobacco products regulated under the tobacco control law. The Health ministry in early February ruled the sale and distribution of BAT nicotine pouches, trading under Lyft brand, be done under the Tobacco Control Act —a move that would...
Zipporah Kuria, Corporate Tax Manager, BAT Kenya "The complexities of the current world have made it difficult for young people to thrive, especially when they lack an adequate support system. With pressure coming from all angles – especially social media – we are seeing many cases of youth depression and general hopelessness in life. Due to...
Last year the Spanish boyband Dvicio were riding high after their latest album topped the charts. The “boys” – by now all in their late 20s or early 30s – were the summer’s cover stars for Like!, a tween magazine. Despite the pandemic, the band were still touring Spain. But these were gigs with a...
