‘Steep hike in prices of cigarettes needed to discourage smokers’

JEDDAH: A nominal hike in cigarette prices like the recent one is unlikely to result in smokers in the Kingdom kicking the habit, says an activist.
“One way to discourage smokers is by raising the prices of tobacco products gradually to reach the average global price of $13 per packet,” Mohammad Al-Yamani, chairman of ‘Naqa’ (anti-smoking society), was quote as saying by an online newspaper on Monday.
With the recent increase in cigarette prices, smokers in the Kingdom are left with four options — kick the habit, reduce smoking, switch to cheaper cigarettes or simply accept the new prices, he said.
“It is very much likely that smokers will choose the last option, that of accepting the new prices, and continue with the habit because the purchasing power of consumers is generally strong in Saudi Arabia,” said Al-Yamani.
He explained that nobody can predict the way how smokers will respond to the new price rise because of the lack of clear and accurate figures showing the proportion and number of smokers in the Kingdom.
Al-Yamani demanded that the authorities conduct surveys to find out the effect of the new decision to raise cigarette prices and establish benchmarks.
Over SR50 million goes up in smoke daily because of addiction to cigarettes in the Kingdom, let alone the thousands of deaths that occur every year due to diseases associated with smoking, the head of the anti-tobacco and anti-drugs organization has said.
As many as 23,000 people were killed due to smoking in 2015, Sheikh Abdullah Al-Othaim, chairperson of Tobacco and Narcotics Combat Society, has said.