Indonesia raises smoking age limit, bans single cigarette sales
- Indonesia, a country with nearly 70 million adult smokers, will also curb cigarette advertising
Indonesia raised the minimum age limit for purchasing cigarettes to 21 from 18 as part of a series of changes to health regulations intended to curb the deadly habit in a country with one of the world’s highest smoking rates.
A country of 270 million people, Indonesia is one of the world’s top producers of tobacco and there are about 70 million adult smokers there, The World Health Organization said in a 2021 survey.
In a government regulation signed by President Joko Widodo last week, Indonesia raised the minimum age for people wanting to buy cigarettes to 21 and banned the sale of a single cigarette, a cheap alternative common in local street stores.
The regulation is intended to “lower prevalence of smokers and prevent early-age smokers,” says the regulation. Among the provisions is banning the sale of cigarettes within 200 metres (656 feet) from schools and playgrounds.
The regulation took effect immediately.
Indonesia’s health ministry said in a 2023 survey that 7.4 per cent of smokers out of 70 million smokers in the country are between the ages of 10 to 18, with 15-19 being the age group with the most amount of smokers.
