The Republic of the Philippines is a lower-middle income[1] archipelagic country with an approximate population of 109.2 million, which makes it the second-most populated country in the ASEAN region. Every year in the Philippines, nearly 88,000 people die as a result of tobacco-related diseases.[2] The country’s biggest cigarette manufacturer is PMFTC, Inc, a joint-venture between Philip Morris Philippines Manufacturing, Inc. (PMPMI) and Fortune Tobacco Corporation (FTC).
Smoking Prevalence
The 2015 Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) of the Philippines showed that:[3]
a.There were 23.8 percent (16.6 million) adults reported as tobacco users in any form. Overall, 18.7 percent (13.1 million) of adults currently smoke tobacco daily with an average of 11 cigarettes per day.
b. An estimated 21.5 percent of adults (3.6 million) were exposed to tobacco smoke in enclosed areas at the workplace in the past month.
Cigarette Retail Price
In June 2019, the Republic Act No. 11346 was passed, which decreed an increase in cigarette tax from PHP 35 to PHP 45 by 2020, and then a yearly increase of PHP 5 until 2023.[4]
Tobacco Farming
National Tobacco Administration (NTA) data shows that the number of registered tobacco farmers in 2016 was 40,982.[5]
Tobacco Leaf Production
According to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)[6] the information of tobacco leaf production in the Philippines in 2018 as presented in the table below;
| Element | Value |
| Area harvested | 28,212.00 ha |
| Yield | 17,858.00Fc hg/ha |
| Production | 50,381.00 tonnes |
FC: Calculated data
Who Dominates the Market?
As of 2019, PMFTC held 70.5% of the cigarette market share in the Philippines, followed by Japan Tobacco International (JTI) at 26.5%.[7]
Roadmap to Tobacco Control
The Philippines ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control on 6 June 2005 and became a Party to the treaty on 4 September 2005.[8] The first tobacco control policy was found in the 1985 Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines, which made it unlawful “to purchase, manufacture, request, distribute or accept electoral propaganda gadgets such as …cigarettes”.[9]
Tobacco Control Legislation in the Philippines[10]
| 1985 | Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines |
| 1987 | Administrative Code of 1987 |
| 1992 | Republic Act No. 7394, Consumer Act of the Philippines |
| 1997 | Republic Act No. 8424, Amending the National Internal Revenue Code, As Amended, And for Other Purposes |
| 2000 | Electronic Commerce Act, Implementing Rules and Regulations |
| 2003 | Republic Act No. 9211, Regulating the Packaging, Use, Sale, Distribution and Advertisements of Tobacco Products and for Other Purposes (Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003) Rules and Regulations Implementing Republic Act No. 9211, Otherwise Known as the Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003 |
| 2008 | Monitoring and Enforcement Guidelines of the Tobacco Regulation Act and Its Implementing Rules and Regulations |
| 2009 | Civil Service Commission Memorandum Circular No. 17 s. 2009, Smoking Prohibition based on 100% Smoke-free Environment Policy Comelec Minute Resolution No.16-0234, banning smoking in polling places in line with CSC MC-17 s. 2009 |
| 2010 | Department of Transportation and Communications Memorandum Circular 2009-36 on 100% Smoke-free Public Utility Vehicles and Public Land Transportation Terminals Department of Health Memorandum 2010-126 on Protection of the Department of Health, including all of its Agencies, Regional Offices, Bureaus or Specialized/Attached Offices/ Units, against Tobacco Industry Interference Civil Service Commission and Department of Health Joint Memorandum Circular 2010-01 on Protection of the Bureaucracy Against Tobacco Industry Interference Department of Science and Technology Memorandum on Commitment to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) |
| 2012 | Department of Education Order No. 6, s. 2012 on Guidelines on the Adoption and Implementation of Public Health Policies on Tobacco Control and Protection Against Tobacco Industry Interference Department of Labor and Employment Memorandum on Civil Service Issuances on Smoking Prohibition and on Protection of the Bureaucracy Against Tobacco Industry Interference REPUBLIC ACT 10351: An act restructuring the excise tax on alcohol and tobacco products by amending Sections 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 8, 131 and 288 of RA no. 8424, otherwise known as the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended by RA no. 9334 |
| 2014 | Republic Act 10643: An Act to Effectively Instill Health Consciousness through Graphic Health Warnings on Tobacco Products (The Graphic Health Warnings Law) |
| 2015 | Graphic Health Warning Templates |
| 2016 | Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 10643: An Act to Effectively Instill Health Consciousness Through Graphic Health Warnings on Tobacco Products,” (The Graphic Health Warnings Law) Department of Education Order 48 s2016: Policy and Guidelines on Comprehensive Tobacco Control 2016 Prohibition on Solicitation or Acceptance of Gifts: MC No. 29 2016 |
| 2017 | PH EO26 Establishment of smoke-free environments in public and enclosed places 2017 PH DILG Memorandum Circular to support EO26 2017 |
| 2019 | Third (3rd) Set of Graphic Health Warning Templates pursuant to Republic Act no. 10643 2019 Revised Rules and Regulations on Electronic Nicotine and Non-Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS/ENNDS) 2019 Executive Order No. 106 Prohibiting the Manufacture, Distribution, Marketing and Sale of Unregistered and/ or Adulterated Electronic Nicotine/ Non-Nicotine Delivery Systems, Heated Tobacco Products and Other Novel Tobacco Products, Amending Executive Order No. 26 (S.2017) and for Other Purposes 2019 Administrative Order No. 2019-0009, Third (3rd) Set of Graphic Health Warning Templates Pursuant to Republic Act No. 10643 Republic Act No. 11467 Increase excise taxes on alcohol and e-cigarettes 2019 Republic Act No. 11336 Tobacco Tax Law 2019 |
| 2021 | Administrative Order-2021-0054 Graphic Health Warnings on Vapor and HTPs Administrative Order-2021-0030 Forth (4th) Set of Graphic Health Warning Templates pursuant to Republic Act. No. 10643 |
[1] World Bank Country and Lending Groups. 2020. https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/articles/906519
[2] Department of Health – Republic of the Philippines, Tobacco Control Key Facts and Figures, https://www.doh.gov.ph/Tobacco-Control-Key-facts-and-Figures
[3] Ibid, Global Adult Tobacco Survey: Executive Summary 2015, https://psa.gov.ph/sites/default/files/kmcd/GATS-PHL2016-Executive%20Summary_13Mar2017.pdf
[4] Cabreza V. 28 August 2019, 1,000 percent cigarette price hike pushed, the Inquirer, https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1158354/1000-percent-cigarette-price-hike-pushed
[5] Chavez JJ, Drope J, Li Q, Aloria MJ. (2016). The Economics of Tobacco Farming in the Philippines. Quezon City: Action for Economic Reforms and Atlanta: American Cancer Society. https://aer.ph/industrialpolicy/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/REPORT-The-Economics-of-Tobacco-Farming-in-the-Philippines-LAYOUT.pdf, page 3
[6] Tobacco Production Quantity by Country, FAO Data: Food and Agriculture Organization <http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=FAO&f=itemCode%3a826>
[7] Global Data, Manufacturer Market Share 2005-2018, Cigarettes in the Philippines, 2019, page 24
[8] https://untobaccocontrol.org/impldb/philippines/
[9] Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines, 3 December 1985, Section 85, https://bit.ly/2Zb342p
[10] https://seatca.org/resource-center-asean-tc-philippines/