SANGSAD BHABAN, Jan 23, 2020 (BSS) – Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque today said Bangladesh has to spend around Taka 30,570 crore every year due to the deadly diseases and early deaths of people caused by tobacco.
“According to the Tobacco Atlas-2018, over 1, 61,000 people die in
Bangladesh every year suffering from tobacco-related diseases,” he said while
replying a starred question placed by ruling party lawmaker Begum Shamsun
Nahar (Women Seat-13) in the Jatiya Sangsad.
Citing the findings of a study titled ‘The Economic Cost of Tobacco
Users in Bangladesh: A Health Cost Approach’, Maleque said at present, about
15 lakh adults have been suffering from tobacco-related diseases, while more
than 61,000 children are getting victimised of passive smoking, falling sick
in deadly diseases.
He said Bangladesh has to spend around Taka 30,570 crore every year in
addressing the deadly diseases and early deaths of people caused by tobacco,
which was 1.4 percent of the national income in fiscal 2017-18.
The health minister said tobacco is a harmful product as it poses risk
to environment, public health and economy during its production, processing
and uses.
“The use of both tobacco and smokeless tobacco is a serious and deadly
addiction,” he said, adding passive smoking also causes serious harm to non-
smokers.
Observing that addressing the tobacco-related diseases and deaths is a
big challenge for Bangladesh, Maleque said people are exposed to various
deadly diseases, including stroke, cancer and heart diseases, due to tobacco
use.
At the South Asian Speakers Summit on January 31 in 2016, he said, Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina declared that Bangladesh would be tobacco-free by
2040.
In line with the declaration of the prime minister, the government has
already formulated a draft roadmap to make the country free from tobacco by
2040, he added.