By Kabuye Ronald
Despite Uganda’s bold step to increase cigarette taxes under the Excise Tax Amendment Act of 2025, the tobacco industry appears to be shielding consumers from the full impact — a move that threatens both public health objectives and government revenue targets.
According to Aziizi Agaba, a tobacco control activist with the Uganda National Health Consumers Organization (UNHCO), a recent rapid market price survey revealed that the entire tax increase has not been passed through to the retail prices of cigarettes.
“The goal, as public health experts, is that higher cigarette taxes should translate into higher prices, discouraging consumption and protecting people’s health,” said Agaba. “But what we have noted is that the burden of the tax increase is not being fully transferred to consumers, which is very dangerous.”
Parliament in June 2025 passed the Excise Tax Amendment Act, which doubled taxes on imported cigarettes and raised excise duties on locally produced brands by 10%. Yet, despite this significant policy move, prices for the country’s most popular cigarette brands such as Supermatch and Sportsman have barely moved.
“We have seen only a very slight increase in the retail prices of the cheapest cigarette brands,” Agaba explained. “This does not serve public health goals, nor does it raise adequate revenue for government. The tobacco industry appears to be absorbing the tax instead of passing it to consumers.”
Agaba warned that this practice effectively blunts the intended effect of taxation which is to make cigarettes less affordable and, consequently, reduce consumption.
Citing evidence from global studies, he added that some countries have introduced cigarette price regulations to prevent tobacco companies from manipulating price structures when taxes are raised.
“In some countries, laws ensure that when the excise tax is applied, it actually impacts the retail price,” Agaba noted. “Otherwise, the industry smoothens prices gradually little by little so that consumers don’t feel the pinch immediately, defeating the purpose of the tax.”
He urged the Ugandan government to go further by imposing a far higher excise tax, especially on locally produced cigarettes, which are the most widely consumed.
“This year’s 10% increase on local cigarettes is insignificant,” Agaba said. “It doesn’t reduce consumption, and it doesn’t bring in much revenue. What we need is perhaps even a 200% increase something that truly changes behavior and protects public health.”
Public health advocates have long argued that effective tobacco taxation is one of the most powerful tools for reducing smoking rates. But without strong price regulation and government oversight, Uganda’s recent tax reforms may fall short of their potential, leaving the tobacco industry, once again, a step ahead of policymakers.
