The Federal Ministry of Health has inaugurated a ad-hoc committe on Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB) Tax .
The ad-hoc committee which was inaugurated on Thursday in Abuja comprises of representatives from Federal Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Agriculture, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) , Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Nigeria Custom Service , Nigeria Police Force (NPF), National Assembly, National Orientation Agency (NOA), National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Media amongst others .
The national coordinator, Non-Communicable Disease ( NCD) division, Federal Ministry of Health , Dr Deborah Odoh, said the committee will be saddled with the responsibility of addressing excess consumption of SSB through actualizing comprehensive coordinated and sustainable implementation strategies of SSB tax regime .
Represented by the Deputy Director, NCD division, FMOH , Etha Jeanette Nweka, said the committee will also expand the scope of SSB tax to include a wide range of sugary drinks.
“The committee is expected to determine the most effective SSB Tax strategy in the context of Nigeria, to explore option for legislative frame work, to work towards increasing future increment.
“Prioritise strategic advocacy intervention towards policy makers to enlist their support for the SSB tax and examine current perceptions of opportunities and barriers for SSB health taxes,” she said.
She said Nigeria is a low- and middle-income country where more than 70% of the populace pay for health expenditure out of pocket.
She urged the committee to deploy both your individual and collective expertise to come up with a sustainable, comprehensive and coordinated approach that focuses on achieving policy coherence with efforts to strengthen stakeholders and public support.
Also, the Executive Director of Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Akinbode Oluwafemi, said the SSB Tax will enable Nigerians spend their money wisely adding that the SSB Tax is one very low hanging fruits from the federal government to brainstorm and allocate these monies to increase funding into the health sector.
He said CAPPA is an observer for the ad-hoc committee and they will be providing technical assistance to the committee.
POST AUTHOR: Adeola Akinbobola
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