Table 3 Zimbabwe’s 2015 tobacco control policies in relation to FCTC measures to reduce supply for tobacco
FCTC Article [60] | Zimbabwe’s tobacco control policies & activities | Zimbabwe’s practice |
|---|---|---|
Article 15: Eliminate illicit trade in tobacco products. | • No tax stamps, local-language cigarette pack warnings, aggressive enforcement, or penalties in place [120]. | • Cigarette smuggling by STC and BAT-Z widely reported in media [75–81]. |
Article 16: Prohibit sales to and by minors | • Sales of tobacco to under age 18 is prohibited [61]. • Enforcement information unavailable. | • 12 % of youth-current smokers [56] • 28–49 % bought cigarettes in a store [82]. |
Article 17: Provision of support for economically viable alternate activities | • No government sponsored programs to promote alternative crops. | • Ronald Watts, Zambian agricultural consultant, listed 53 possible alternative crops that could be developed in the region (1993) [84, 121]. • “There are no sustainable, economic [ally] viable alternate crops to tobacco [34].” ZTA chairman (2014) • Government and industry officials say- no economically viable alternative crops exist to replace tobacco [34, 83]. • Incentives for tobacco growing remain strong with increasing acreage devoted to it [122, 123]. • Local media favor stories of successful tobacco growing [85, 86]. |