Smoking in Namibia
In Namibia, cigarettes are legally allowed to be sold and used, but there are certain regulations around tobacco products, including cigarettes. These regulations ban all forms of tobacco advertising, set a minimum sales age of 18 years, and prohibit smoking in public places such as healthcare and educational facilities. Additionally, health warnings on packaging are required, and a specific excise tax of 37.56% is applied, contributing to a total taxation rate of 50.60% on cigarettes. Regulations allow purchase of cigarettes online and through vending machines. The current prevalence of smoking among adults aged 15 years and older, according to the World Health Organization, was 11.2% in 2022. This prevalence was significantly higher among males with 19.2%, compared to 4% among females. In terms of absolute numbers, approximately 249,000 individuals in Namibia were identified as smokers in 2024. Compared to previous years, there has been a slight decrease in smoking prevalence from 11.7% in 2020. For reference, the adult daily smoking prevalence in 2017 was reported to be 17.2%, with 27.6% among males and 7.7% among females. The annual number of deaths attributable to tobacco smoking in 2021 was 1,100, of which 388 deaths were among females and 712 were among males. These smoking-related deaths represented 4.1% of all deaths in the country, with 3.24% among females and 4.8% among males. These statistics highlight the ongoing public health challenge posed by tobacco smoking in Namibia, necessitating continued efforts for mitigating its health impacts.
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September 25, 2023 by who.int
Namibia strengthens tobacco control
The Ministry of Health and Social Services with support from WHO conducted a five-day tobacco training workshop to strengthen tobacco control measures in the country. Namibia ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) in November 2005. [...] the Namibian government banned all tobacco product advertisements in the electronic and print media, billboards and promotion well before the Tobacco Products Control Act of 2010 was signed into law.