World No Tobacco Day serves to increase awareness about the preventable death and illness associated with tobacco use. It also puts a spotlight on policies that governments can use to reduce consumption of tobacco products.
Based on decades of evidence, the World Health Organization has declared tobacco taxes one of the most effective and cost-effective policy measures available to reduce tobacco use.
As researchers who investigate economic aspects of tobacco-control policies, we conducted a study to understand the potential for tax-led price increases to reduce cigarette smoking among young people (aged 11-17) in 16 sub-Saharan African countries.
