Stakeholders in public health are targeting an upward review of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage-SSB Tax from the current N10 per litre, in a bid to strengthen Nigeria’s health sector.
The stakeholders including Corporate Accountability and public Participation Africa-CAPPA, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre-CISLAC, Diabetes Association and others who were joined by the Minister of health and social welfare, Prof Ali Pate, made their position known at a public hearing by the Senate Joint Committee on Finance, Customs and Excise.
They said their position was due to Nigeria’s surge in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) linked to excessive consumption of sugary drinks and unhealthy diets which has made formerly rare diseases such as diabetes, stroke, obesity and heart diseases, now some of the leading causes of premature death.
The hearing which was on a bill sponsored by senator representing Rivers West Senatorial District, Ipalibo Harry-Banigo, is seeking to replace the N10 per litre excise duty on no-alcoholic, carbonated sugar-sweetened beverages with a percent levy per litre of the retail price to make provision that a portion of the revenue can go into Health Promotion and Disease Prevention programmes.
Senator Adeniyi Adegbomire who represented Senate President Godswill Akpabio, described the bill as an important one in the interest of public health.
“Not merely is this bill a fiscal one in nature, it is a public health investment strategy that aligns taxation policy with our national health priorities. It proposes the restructuring of existing Excise Duties on sugar-sweetened beverages, not to impose more burden on citizens, but to redirect part of the existing revenue to finance health-related programmes and infrastructure that will improve the well-being of Nigerians”, he said.
Senator Adegbomire reinforced support for the Bill, saying, “Clearly, the N10 per litre excise is no longer realistic in the present-day Nigeria, not only from the value of the naira, but more importantly, the cost of providing health interventions for health-related challenges.”
Mr Bashir Abdulkadir, a Director of Technical Services from the ministry of Finance represented the Minister of Finance, Olawale Edun, said the Ministry has generally aligned with the bill but drew attention to Section 13 of the Customs, Excise Tariffs, Etc. (Consolidation) Act, which empowers the president as the sole authority to vary rates.
It argued that the ministry was already working on a comprehensive process that would cover SSBs and alcoholic drinks and urged the Senate to take note.
In their response, the Joint Committee asserted its constitutional rights to public hearings and amendments of laws that are of national importance and in the interest of public health.
They stressed that the situation is a public health crisis that requires urgent policy intervention, such as an effective SSB Tax and earmarking of same to strengthen the health sector, to stem the tide.
While urging the Senate to amend the bill, the health sector observed that the current ten naira per litre tax, which came into effect when the average bottle of SSB was N150, has been eroded by inflation and is too minimal to affect Nigerians’ consumption of sugary drinks and protect public health .
In his presentation, Executive Director of CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi, made several recommendations including raising SSB Tax as high as 50 per cent of current retail price.
He urged Nigeria to “Adopt a strong retail-price–based excise structure by setting the levy at 50 percent of the retail price, with an absolute minimum floor of 20 percent, in line with WHO guidance and the Bloomberg Task Force on Fiscal Policy for Health. This level is necessary to trigger meaningful reductions in consumption”.
“Earmark revenues from the SSB tax for public health programmes, particularly for the prevention and management of non-communicable diseases, to ensure sustainable financing for population health”, he added.
“Establish a national monitoring and evaluation task force to oversee implementation, ensure compliance, track consumption trends, and measure the health and fiscal impact of Nigeria’s SSB tax policy” He stressed.
He added that the review of the excise on sugar-sweetened beverages is “constitutionally sound, legally justified, economically prudent, and aligned with Nigeria’s public-health obligations and international commitments. Nigeria can no longer rely on a fixed ₦10 duty that has lost its value and its purpose.”
