By Michael Kaluba
The Southern African Alcohol Policy Alliance-SAAPA- Zambia is proposing for an introduction of an alcohol levy to be paid by individual consumers of alcohol as a replica of the tourism levy and other statutory taxes such as the carbon tax and toll fees which road users pay to government.
The organization is also calling for an increment in taxation on all alcoholic beverages as the Ministry of Finance begins to formulate the 2023 national budget, in an effort to reduce unhealthy use of such beverages.
SAAPA Zambia President Phillip Chiponda tells Phoenix News that the alliance is interested in seeing a reduction in availability of alcohol by empowering local authority’s capacity to enforce laws and police illicit alcohol trade, a restriction through increased taxation and an alcohol levy on individuals who consume alcoholic beverages.
Mr. Chiponda is also of the view that government should adopt the recommendations made by the World Health Organization-WHO- in order to reduce on unhealthy usage or consumption of alcohol and classify taxation to suit alcohol based on content with whiskey, brandy and distilled spirits fetch higher and lagers and wines among others fetching considerably lower.
CREDIT: PHOENIX NEWS
