Review of Illicit Tobacco Trade Policy and Program Implementation in the Philippines

Abstract

Tobacco is the leading risk factor driving death and disability across all ages in the Philippines, based on the Global Burden of Disease Study in 2019, rising from the second-highest in 2009 (Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, 2020). In 2019, around 112,000 deaths in the Philippines are attributable to tobacco (Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, 2020). Economically, the Philippines was estimated to be spending Php 269.3 billion in 2012 on healthcare and productivity losses attributable to smoking. This is equivalent to 2.5% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product that year (Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, 2020). Government efforts in countering illicit trade have been said to be uncoordinated and poorly implemented (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2018). Further, reports on actual policy implementation are lacking. In the Philippines, there are few to no reports and studies on the localization and disaggregation of regional data on illicit tobacco trade. This study aims to review the policies and program implementation on illicit tobacco trade in the Philippines in relation to The Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products or Illicit Tobacco Protocol (ITP). This study is divided into two parts. The first part involves policy and stakeholder analysis; the second part focuses on the program implementation. Based on a rapid scan of online government databases, a total of twelve government policies related to the prevention of tobacco illicit trade were extracted for review from which five were Republic Acts, three were implementing guidelines, two were revenue regulations, a memorandum circular and a presidential decree. Notably, these are only available in each agency’s repository. For the review of programs, a total of eight participants were recruited to participate in the study. The participants represent various agencies and levels of governance: Civil Society, Local Government Unit, and a National Government Agency. The researchers conclude that the Philippines is still ill-prepared in combating illicit tobacco trade. In the context of programs and policies, however, there is huge potential for the government agencies to collaborate and strengthen their core strategies. In comparison to the ITP, many Philippine policies are partially compliant. Many of the mechanisms in place are working for each agency’s objectives, but fail to address the illicit trade at the macro level with its fragmentation. These include not only policy development, but also monitoring. In the event these crucial gaps are ironed out, acceding to the ITP will remarkably benefit illicit tobacco trade control and serve as a catalyst for developing agency policies. This study identified unique characteristics in the policy environment and implementation of illicit tobacco trade. In the Philippines, WHO FCTC Article 15 appears to be (and should be) largely managed by BIR in view of taxation. However, having a better appreciation of illicit trade from the perspectives of health, trade, regulation, law enforcement, and crime reduction, local government can bring to light new approaches and ways to communicate this issue. Moving forward, the researchers recommend to (1) focus on policy gaps, (2) establish an inter-agency framework to strengthen inter-agency coordination, (3) establish a reporting mechanism and monitoring framework, (4) implement best practices and strategies, (5) boost and conduct further research, and finally, (7) accede to the ITP to strengthen Philippine capacity in combating illicit tobacco trade.