NEWS
ILLICIT TRADE continues to hurt the tobacco farming industry
AGRICULTURAL VALUE CHAIN
Virtual Descusssion Series
Kefiloe Manthata Senwes Journalist
In the twelfth session of the Agri Value
Chain Discussion Series , we hear testimony from tobacco industry workers and farmers who speak on the harsh impact of the ban on their livelihoods . The tobacco industry is said to have lost in excess of R2 billion in revenue since the lockdown began , while the illegal trade of tobacco products continues to rise . The halt in sales brings forth relevant questions about job security and the long-term repercussions for those working legitimately in the tobacco industry . Mohau , who works in the tobacco industry , says that the ban has negatively impacted their lives in a very harsh manner . “ We know that the government , in their efforts to control the spread of Covid-19 , went as far as banning the sale of tobacco . What is frustrating for us is that tobacco is easily available at every corner of the township . People have not stopped smoking because sales are continuing on the black market . The illegal sales make it especially hard for us who are in the legitimate trade of tobacco , because while our livelihood was halted , tobacco sales continued .”
Shadrack Sibisi , Chairman of the Black Tobacco Farmers Association ( BFTA ), shares that BFTA has been at the forefront of the efforts made by different stakeholders in the tobacco industry to get the tobacco ban lifted . He says they started farming tobacco in 2010 in Mpumalanga . They struggled with expansion efforts for many years . For a long time , they could not find tangible reasons as to why tobacco farming grows at such a slow rate in South Africa . In 2016 , they identified the illicit trade of cigarettes as a hindrance .
A study conducted by the Research Unit of the Economics of Excisable Products ( REEEP ), an independent research unit based at the University of Cape Town ( UCT ), found that over 90 percent of smokers who chose not to quit during the ban were able to easily access cigarettes on the black market . The study further revealed that tobacco prices hiked by up to 250 percent during this period .
Sinenhlanhla Mguni , Chairman of Fair Trade Independent Tobacco Association ( FITA ), gives a background on the court action that they instituted to challenge the ban on the cigarette trade by government . He recalls how the initial confusion around the ban , with conflicting messages com-
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SENWES SCENARIO | LENTE � SPRING 2020