South African smokers suffering through a total tobacco sales ban since late March, got their hopes up recently when the easing up of coronavirus lockdown measures included allowing tobacco sales again; tobacco and alcohol sales were inexplicably banned as Covid-19 prevention measures. However, only a few days later are the announced lifting, the bizarre tobacco sales ban was reinstated due to “health-related” reasons.
A South African health minister said the reasoning is that many smokers roll their own cigarettes by hand, licking them and then sharing them with others and that this practice is unsafe during the time of the pandemic.
In late March, in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak, the South African government banned the sale of tobacco and alcohol as part of a broad lockdown — one of the strictest anywhere.
The ban has fueled a contraband cigarette trade that was well-known before the lockdown started. By some estimates, the contraband market already made up more than 30% of the market, depriving the legitimate tobacco business of profits and the government of tax revenue. Currently, South Africa has an estimated 11 million smokers who were overnight turned into potential criminals for obtaining what was previously a legal product.
A pack of 20 cigarettes now go for up to SAR150 (US$8), three times the former legal price. Some smokers stocked up on cartons of cigarettes before the original lockdown in March, but they may be getting tense with the extension of the ban lasting well beyond what any could have planned for.
Recently, British American Tobacco dropped a plan to sue the South African government over unfair trade practices due to the tobacco ban, and instead plans to enter negotiations with the government to solve the sales ban.
“Before the Covid-19 crisis and the lockdown, South Africa started to make progress in tackling the rampant illicit trade in cigarettes, which was costing South Africa more than 10 billion rand a year,” according to an unnamed BAT spokesperson.