Low tobacco taxes light up disease crisis, anti-smoking groups warn

Tobacco use is a major risk factor for both cancer and cardiovascular diseases. [File, Standard] Anti-tobacco lobby groups in Kenya are calling on the government to increase taxes on tobacco and nicotine products as a key strategy to reduce the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Currently, tobacco products in the country are taxed at 32 per cent, well below the World Health Organisation's (WHO) recommended rate of 70 per cent. Tobacco use is a major risk factor for both cancer and cardiovascular diseases, which continue to strain the country's healthcare system. "Tobacco control through increased taxation is one of the most effective ways to curb NCDs," said Anne Avonde, project officer at the National Taxpayers' Association. According to the Kenya Tobacco Atlas, approximately 9,400 Kenyans die annually due to tobacco-related illnesses. Moreover, 46 per cent of 2,000 patients receiving treatment for chronic respiratory diseases, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, tuberculosis and cancer reported a history of tobacco use. The lobbyists have called for urgent action from the National Assembly, National Treasury, Ministry of Health, Kenya Revenue Authority, and other relevant government agencies to increase taxes on tobacco and nicotine products. They insist the increase should be in accordance with the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control recommendation. Speaking over the weekend, the lobby groups said budget analysis lays bare the deepening crisis in Kenya's response to NCDs. In the 2023/24 financial year, total estimated expenditure on NCDs prevention and control was Sh2.25 billion. The amount dramatically dropped to Sh749.3 million in 2024/25, with a projected increase to Sh2.2 billion in 2025/26. "This erratic funding pattern undermines long-term planning and service delivery. Spending on NCDs prevention and control is inconsistent and poorly aligned with the increasing burden of disease," said Thomas Lindi, chief executive officer, Kenya Tobacco Control and Health Promotion Alliance. He added: "The comprehensive analysis, which tracked budgetary allocations and expenditures between 2020/21 and 2025/26 financial years, finds that while NCDs are rapidly rising, ''Kenya's public health response remains dangerously out of step with the scale of the threat." According to WHO, taxation of unhealthy products should be at least 50 per cent by 2035. Prisca Githuka, vice chair of the Kenya Network of Cancer Organisations, said NCDs including cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes, and chronic respiratory conditions now account for an estimated 41 per cent of all deaths in Kenya. "Budget cuts are reported at a time when these diseases are responsible for more than four in every ten deaths in the country," said Githuka. According to WHO, NCDs cause 74 per cent of all global deaths annually. WHO estimates premature deaths in sub-Saharan Africa will rise to 3.8 million in 2030, representing 51 per cent of all premature deaths - implying that NCDs will have an adverse impact on socioeconomic development in the region. "Despite this alarming trend, public investment in preventing and managing these diseases remains sporadic, under-prioritised, and insufficient," said Githuka. She noted that there exists a huge mismatch between stated health policy ambitions and the actual budgetary allocations. The Kenya Non-Communicable Diseases and Injuries Poverty Commission estimates that at least Sh1,500 per person annually is required to mount a meaningful NCDs response.

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