Youth demand on tobacco control to be raised in parliament: Bobby Hajjaj
State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Bobby Hajjaj has said that the demands of young people for stronger tobacco control measures will be raised in Parliament with due importance, stressing the urgency of building a tobacco-free generation.
He made the remarks while addressing a seminar titled “Government Commitments and Public Expectations in Controlling Tobacco-Related Non-Communicable Diseases for Public Health Protection”, organised by Dhaka Ahsania Mission in Dhanmondi on Tuesday.
Highlighting policy priorities, Hajjaj said the government aims to pass the Tobacco Control (Amendment) Ordinance 2025 into law and take fiscal measures in the upcoming budget to raise tobacco prices to levels that would discourage use among children and adolescents. He also indicated plans to enforce restrictions on the sale of tobacco products within 100 yards of educational institutions.
Speaking at the event, Professor Dr Shafiun Nahin Shimul, Director of the Institute of Health Economics at the University of Dhaka, said proposed tax reforms could generate more than BDT 85,000 crore in revenue—an increase of BDT 44,000 crore compared with the current fiscal year.
Iqbal Masud, Director of the Health and WASH Sector at Dhaka Ahsania Mission, underscored that tobacco control is central to public health protection. He said reducing tobacco use is essential to tackling non-communicable diseases and urged the government to pass the amendment ordinance in its original form in line with its electoral commitments and the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
Participants also called for a ban on e-cigarettes to be incorporated into the legislation and pressed for its passage during the current parliamentary session to curb rising health risks among young people.
In a keynote presentation, Shariful Islam, Coordinator of the Tobacco Control Project at Dhaka Ahsania Mission, said 37.8 million people in Bangladesh use tobacco, contributing to around 546 premature deaths daily. He added that tobacco-related health and environmental damage costs the country an estimated BDT 87,000 crore annually.
To reduce tobacco consumption, proposals for the 2026–27 budget include merging mid- and low-tier cigarette categories, setting the retail price of a 10-stick pack at BDT 100, and imposing a uniform specific tax of BDT 4 per pack.
Shariful Islam said implementing these measures, alongside passing the amendment ordinance, could prevent more than 185,000 premature deaths among both adults and young people over time.
The seminar was chaired by Professor Dr Golam Rahman, President of Dhaka Ahsania Mission. Other speakers included Marjana Muntaha, Coordinator of the Ahsania Mission Youth Forum, and member Tasnim Hasan Abir.
