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Pakistan: Overview

Consumption

• In Pakistan, 19 percent of adults (age 18+) smoke tobacco.
• Almost one-third (32 percent of men and 6 percent of women smoke.
• Among youth (age 13-15) in Islamabad, 1 percent smoke cigarettes (boys 2 percent; girls 0.6 percent) and 9.5 percent use tobacco products other than cigarettes (boys 11 percent; girls 7 percent).
• Common forms of tobacco used include cigarettes, hookah and smokeless products such as paan, ghutka and naswar.

Health consequences

• Each year, approximately 60,000 people die from tobacco-related diseases in Pakistan.
• Among youth (age 13-15), 34 percent report being exposed to secondhand smoke in public places and 27 percent report exposure at home.

Tobacco industry

Pakistan Tobacco Co Ltd, a subsidiary of British American Tobacco, held 51 percent of the cigarette market in 2008 and Lakson Tobacco Co Ltd, fully owned by Philip Morris International, held about 40 percent of the market. In Pakistan, more than 76 billion cigarettes were sold in 2008.

FCTC status

Pakistan ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control on November 3, 2004.

Tobacco control policy status

Smoke-free environments: Smoking is banned in indoor offices, restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities and on public transportation in Pakistan. Enforcement on the ban on smoking is lax.

Advertising, promotion and sponsorship: Pakistan does not have a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising and promotion.

Warning labels: Pakistan implemented pictorial warnings on cigarette packs on May 31, 2010. The new warnings cover 40 percent of both the front and back of cigarette packs. Thirty percent of the warning is pictorial and 10 percent text.

Tobacco taxes: Tobacco products are cheap and tobacco taxes in Pakistan are below the rate recommended by the World Bank (from 65 percent to 80 percent of retail price) that is commonly present in countries with effective tobacco control policies.