Turkmenistan pushes tobacco ban ahead of 2025 year-end deadline
Turkmenistan is working toward a smoke-free goal by the end of 2025, using bans, heavy taxes, and fines of up to 200 manat (USD 57) to push its small number of smokers underground. A pack of cigarettes now costs USD 14 to 49, equivalent to 11% of the aver
Turkmenistan is pushing to achieve a smoke-free goal by the end of 2025, using bans, high taxes, and fines of up to 200 manat (US$57) to drive its small number of smokers underground. Cigarettes currently cost US$14 to US$49 per pack, equal to 11% of the local average monthly salary, and many people buy single cigarettes from kiosks in neighboring countries.
According to the World Health Organization, only 4% of residents in this Central Asian country smoke.
Although authorities have held cigarette-burning events and aired televised pledges to quit smoking, residents say tobacco will not disappear but will instead flow into the black market.
