The official website of the Philippine Department of Agriculture announced on 22nd October that the National Tobacco Administration (NTA), led by Director and CEO Belinda S. Sanchez, will hold the 2nd International Tobacco Summit on 23rd and 24th October at Seda Vertis North in Quezon City. The summit aims to strengthen efforts to combat the illicit tobacco trade.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will be the keynote speaker on the opening day of the summit. More than 200 tobacco farmers, local and foreign tobacco companies, media representatives and other stakeholders are expected to attend.
The forum, themed "Advancing the Local Tobacco Industry and Strengthening Efforts to Combat Illicit Trade", will focus on discussing the importance, opportunities, challenges and strategies for the further development of the local tobacco industry. It will also present the government's ongoing efforts to combat the illicit tobacco trade in the country.
Director Sanchez expressed that combating the illicit tobacco trade requires comprehensive measures at the national level, including strengthening national policies, enhancing regional cooperation, improving law enforcement mechanisms and raising public awareness. There is an urgent need to strengthen national and regional policies and law enforcement mechanisms to combat illicit tobacco trade in order to safeguard national security and economic stability.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) in the Philippines estimates that the national government loses up to 100 billion Philippine pesos (US$17 billion) in revenue each year due to the illegal tobacco trade. Data from the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) shows that 2.2 million Filipinos depend on the tobacco industry, including more than 430,000 farmers, farm workers and their family members.
The Bureau held its first International Tobacco Summit on 2 and 3 August, focusing on discussions on combating illicit tobacco trade and smuggling activities.
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