Generating evidence to support policies for raising taxes on tobacco products in Lebanon : a research study funded by IDRC-RITC Canada; final report

International evidence confirms that increased taxation on tobacco products and purchase price are effective tobacco control strategies. Using the model simulation in this study, findings show that consumption among youth of local cigarettes would drop by 101% (compared to 93% for the entire population), of imported cigarettes by 9% (compared to 7% overall), and shisha tobacco by 37% (26% overall). Increasing tobacco taxes would generate 127 million USD in additional public revenues. Proposed tobacco tax reforms would operate on two dimensions: increasing the final price of tobacco products, and increasing the share of taxes in the final retail price