Increase Taxes On Alcohol And Tobacco

The Programmes Director of Vision for Alternative Development (VALD), Mr Labram Musah has called on government to roll out a patchwork of new policies that would give a raise to taxes on alcohol and tobacco.

According to him, this step will help control or better still prevent Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and to a larger extent―death.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Mr Musah said, failure to increase the taxes would impose massive costs on individuals and communities which will in turn oppose the global commitments to sustainable development.

The statement said “Governments must act on pledges to prevent NCDs in the first place, and to ensure that people can obtain services to treatment.”

It continued: “Finance Ministries save lives by taxing tobacco, alcohol and sugary drinks, by cutting consumption and raising revenues to treat NCDs.”

In his statement, Mr Musah called on all stakeholders to ensure that the youth are well informed on the dangers that come with the use of tobacco, alcohol and sugary drinks.

This advocacy came after the World Health Organisation (WHO) held a Conference on NCDs in Montevideo Uruguay on October 18-20, this year.

The goal of the Conference was to highlight the critical links between reducing premature deaths from NCDs, promoting mental health and well-being and enhancing policy coherence across areas that impact the governance, prevention, management and surveillance of NCDs.

It was also to help raise awareness among political leaders for the 2018 UN High-Level Meeting and guide its preparations.

Source: thePublisher