Indonesia bans sale of single cigarette sticks in new regulation

Jakarta, July 31 (ANTARA) - Indonesia officially prohibited the sale of individual cigarette sticks in retail through Government Regulation No. 28 of 2024 on Health enacted by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi).

According to Article 434 (1), point (c) of the government regulation signed by the president on July 26, 2024, every person is prohibited from selling tobacco products and electronic cigarettes in individual sticks, except for cigars and electronic cigarettes.

The same article prohibited the sale of cigarette products and their electronic variants at self-service machines, near frequently used entry and exit points, and within 200 meters of educational institutions and playgrounds.

Cigarette merchants are prohibited from selling their products to all people below 21 years of age and pregnant mothers.

While the law restricted the sale of cigarette products through websites, electronic applications, and social media, Article 434 (2) provided that sales through the medium are allowed when age verification is available.

Apart from restricting the sale of cigarettes, the presidential regulation also regulated the packaging and quantity of cigarette products, including prohibiting a machine-produced white cigarette product package from containing less than 20 cigarette sticks.

The government regulation is a derivative of Law No. 17 of 2023 on Health.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin stated that the government regulation reflected the government's determination to transform and realize an inclusive and resilient national healthcare ecosystem.

"We laud the enactment of the government regulation that will be our foundation to reform and develop the healthcare system in all parts of the country," Sadikin noted in his statement on Tuesday.

The minister remarked that the enactment of Government Regulation No. 28 of 2024 will supersede 26 earlier government regulations and five presidential regulations.