The Development Organisation of the Rural Poor (DORP) has demanded that the amended Tobacco Control Ordinance 2025 be passed in the upcoming 13th national parliament.
The Smoking and Tobacco Products (Control) (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025 must be enacted to curb tobacco-related diseases and deaths, DORP said in a roundtable discussion at the CIRDAP Auditorium on Wednesday.
In the discussion, titled “Impact of the Smoking and Tobacco Products (Control) (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025 and the Way Forward,” speakers stressed the need of the ordinance approval in the parliament.
Addressing the session as the chief guest, Dr Hafiz Ahmed Chowdhury, secretary of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, emphasised that tobacco’s harm extends beyond individual health to impact families, society, and the national economy.
Drawing on data from The Tobacco Atlas 2025, he revealed that nearly 200,000 people die prematurely every year in Bangladesh due to tobacco-related illnesses.
He noted that while the government has promulgated the amended ordinance for public health reasons, its long-term sustainability depends on it being passed by Parliament.
Sheikh Momena Moni, additional secretary of the Ministry of Health, attended as a special guest and highlighted the economic burden of tobacco.
She cited a recent study showing that the total cost of tobacco use and production in 2024 reached approximately Tk87,000 crore, with environmental damage accounting for 16 per cent of that figure.
In contrast, government revenue from tobacco during the same period was roughly Tk40,000 crore – less than half of the estimated total cost. She stressed that the effective implementation of the ordinance is vital to reducing public health expenditure.
Public health experts at the meeting described tobacco as a primary cause of heart attacks and other fatal cardiovascular diseases. They argued that strengthening legislation is essential to protecting future generations.
Civil society representatives pledged to continue their advocacy to ensure the ordinance becomes law and urged the Ministry of Law to facilitate placing the ordinance as a bill before Parliament. Furthermore, they called on political parties to include tobacco control as a priority in their election manifestos.
The discussion was attended by several prominent figures, including Dr Parimal Chandra Mallik, president of the Bangladesh Dental Society; Dr Sakhawat Hossain Sayantha, dean of the Faculty of Dentistry at Bangladesh Medical University; and Md Suratuzzaman, director of the Bangladesh Retired Government Employees Welfare Association.
Other notable participants included Wahida Yasmin, adviser to Lighthouse Organisation; former secretary Munshi Alauddin Al Azad; Md Tasnim Laskar of the Bangladesh Development Party; Mohammad Nurul Amin, chairperson of DORP; AHM Noman, chief executive; and Mohammad Zobair Hasan, deputy executive director.
