📈 ADIC Urges Stronger Tobacco Policy Action to Curb Rs. 214 Bn Economic Burden

The Alcohol and Drug Information Centre (ADIC) has called for progressive policy measures on World No Tobacco Day 2026, highlighting the severe healthcare and economic toll of tobacco use in Sri Lanka. • Overall Health & Economic Impact: Tobacco causes ~20,000 preventable deaths annually in Sri Lanka. Daily domestic spending on cigarettes stands at Rs. 520 million. Based on 2019 data, health and economic costs reached Rs. 214 billion, vastly outweighing the Rs. 92.9 billion generated in cigarette tax revenue. • Taxation & Production Trends: A 20% cigarette tax hike in 2023 led to an 18% YoY drop in sales (521.5 million fewer sticks) and boosted state revenue by Rs. 7.7 billion. Conversely, slower tax increases in 2025 led to a 5% YoY increase in cigarette production, reversing previous declining trends. • Policy Delays & Industry Interference: Key amendments to the NATA Act—including a ban on single-stick sales and the introduction of plain packaging—have faced nearly 8 years of delay due to industry lobbying. • Proposed Interventions: ADIC strongly backs the Sri Lanka Medical Association's (SLMA) 2025 Tobacco-Free Generation (TFG) proposal to ban tobacco sales to anyone born after 2010. Further recommendations include indexing tobacco taxes to inflation, creating a uniform tax structure, and rejecting deceptive "harm reduction" narratives (like e-cigarettes) targeting youth.