Participation at the “Conference on health tax reforms – challenges and lessons learned”
World Bank office in Vienna organized a two-day conference in Vienna (June 24-25, 2024) where researchers presented their findings and exchanged experiences in the field of health tax reforms. The focus of the conference was tobacco, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened beverages taxation, with representatives of the policymakers also taking part in the conference. The conference is co-organized by the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health which is the partner of the University of Banja Luka Faculty of Economics on the project “Accelerating Progression on Tobacco Taxation in Low- and Middle-Income Countries”. The principal investigator from the project on behalf of the University of Banja Luka Faculty of Economics presented the study “Measuring the economic costs of tobacco use – Evidence from Bosnia and Herzegovina”.
From June 25 to 26, research meetings were also held at the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, where the main researcher presented experiences in the project implementation so far (which has been implemented since 2018) and presented the results related to the economic aspects of tobacco use in B&H, as well as challenges in the implementation of stricter tobacco control policies in B&H, a country that ranks among the highest in the world for the percentage of smokers in its population (smoking prevalence).
Published 03.07.2024 at 15:17
World No Tobacco Day 2024
The project team of the Faculty of Economics, University of Banja Luka, working on the project "Accelerating Progression on Tobacco Taxation in Low- and Middle-Income Countries", which is implemented in cooperation with the Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Tobacconomics Program and the Johns Hopkins University (USA), marked this year's World No Tobacco Day, May 31. The marking of this important date in the fight against smoking was held at the Olympic Museum in Sarajevo, by holding a thematic discussion titled “Implementation of tobacco control policies in B&H”. The event gathered a large number of stakeholders from the government and non-governmental sectors, as well as other stakeholders in the field of tobacco control.
The thematic discussion itself was an opportunity to hold two thematic panels:
- Progress of tobacco control policies in BiH
- Excise policy on tobacco and ratification of the protocol on the elimination of the illicit tobacco trade.
On behalf of the project team of the Faculty of Economics, University of Banja Luka, the principal investigator prof. Dragan Gligoric also presented to the attendees the results of multiple studies conducted in the previous years by the Faculty of Economics, University of Banja Luka, in this domain. The results of research on the economic cost of smoking for B&H, as well as the conclusions of the latest research on the factors that influence the initiation of smoking among youth were presented. The event was an opportunity to once again underline the importance of tax policies as one of the key tools in the fight to reduce the prevalence and intensity of smoking.
Apart from the local organizations and institutions, representatives of the World Health Organization and the Delegation of the European Union to Bosnia and Herzegovina also took part in the thematic discussions.
The event was organized in cooperation with PROI and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
The University of Banja Luka (UBL), Bosnia and Herzegovina, is part of a regional network of researchers in Southeastern Europe on tobacco taxation. UBL has been working in cooperation with the Tobacconomics program now at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) (previously housed at the University of Illinois Chicago, or UIC) to conduct economic research on tobacco taxation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. JHU is a partner of the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use. The views expressed in this document cannot be attributed to, nor do they represent, the views of JHU, UIC, or Bloomberg Philanthropies.
Published 04.06.2024 at 15:48
University of Banja Luka's Economics Faculty Team Attends International Tobacco Taxation Conference
Representatives of the research team from the Faculty of Economics, University of Banja Luka – Professor Dragan Gligoric, Ph.D., and Associate Professor Zoran Borovic, Ph.D., recently attended a significant regional meeting on Tobacco Taxation from November 14th to 16th in Istanbul, Turkey. This event gathered experts and organizations representatives from across Europe and Asia, dedicated to discussing advancements in tobacco taxation and control.
At the conference, our team had the opportunity to present two important research studies. The first, led by Professor Dragan Gligoric, was titled "Effects of Tobacco Control Policies and Cigarette Pricing on Smoking Initiation Among Youth in Bosnia and Herzegovina,". The research results of this study are crucial for understanding the dynamics of smoking habits among young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as shaping effective tobacco control strategies. The second study, "B&H Tobacco Excise Tax Modeling" presented by Associate Professor Zoran Borovic, focuses on examining the impact of excise growth on cigarette consumption, fiscal revenues, and smokers' mortality. Analyses show that a significant increase in excise reduces the initiation of smoking among the youth, cigarette consumption, and the number of deaths, while, on the other hand, it increases fiscal revenues."
In addition to the research conducted by our research team consisting of Dragan Gligoric, Zoran Borovic, Nikola Vidovic, Vladana Ritan, and Project Manager Anđela Pepić, team representatives present in Istanbul also delivered a presentation on the topic "Analyzing the determinants of tobacco tax evasion and tax avoidance - with a focus on cross-border trade."
The conference, organized by the University of Illinois Chicago, gathered 35 participants from 17 different countries. It served as an excellent platform for sharing knowledge, discussing current challenges, and exploring future directions in tobacco taxation policy.
The participation of our team in this international forum highlights their dedication to contributing to global discussions on tobacco control. Their work not only enhances our understanding of these issues but also positions our institution as a leader in research in this field.
Published 23.11.2023 at 11:07
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON TOBACCO CONTROL HELD IN BANJA LUKA
An international conference titled "Tobacco Control for a Tobacco-Free Society: Intersections of Tobacco Taxation Policies and Public Health" was held on October 24 and 25, 2023, at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in Banja Luka. The conference was organized by the Faculty of Economics, University of Banja Luka, as part of the project "Accelerating Progress in Tobacco and Tobacco Products Taxation in Low and Middle-Income Countries," with financial support from the Bloomberg Foundation (USA) through the University of Illinois at Chicago as the umbrella organization.
The conference brought together 44 participants, primarily experts in the field of research on the socioeconomic and other impacts of tobacco taxation as one of the most important measures of tobacco control, as well as policy-makers and activists in this field from various countries, including Austria, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Montenegro, Romania, the United States, North Macedonia, Slovakia, and Serbia. The aim of the conference was to present the results of current research and to encourage dialogue and exchange of experiences between researchers, policy-makers, decision-makers, and activists in the field of tobacco control. In this regard, this event represented a platform for exchanging knowledge and experiences among different actors, which will result in improved cooperation and contribute to the creation and implementation of more effective tobacco control policies.
The conference was opened with introductory speeches by the Dean of the Faculty of Economics, Professor Milenko Krajišnik, Ph.D., as well as the Director of the Indirect Taxation Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Zoran Tegeltija, and the representative of the World Health Organization in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lejla Beglerović on behalf of Ervin Korman, the head of the mission in B&H. After that, Mr. Jeffrey Drope from the University of Illinois at Chicago presented the efforts of global research teams to contribute to accelerating progress in tobacco taxation through quality research and recommendations. During the two days of the conference, research results from the aforementioned countries were presented, focusing on the area of modeling the impact of tobacco taxation on public revenues and public health, and its effect on reducing the prevalence of smoking, especially among the youth population, as well as the legal and institutional framework necessary for more adequate tobacco control policies, including taxation. Researchers from the Faculty of Economics, University of Banja Luka, Professor Dragan Gligorić, Ph.D. , and Associate Professor Zoran Borović, Ph.D., presented the results of two research studies, one focusing on modeling the impact of increased excise taxes on tobacco on public revenues and public health, and the other on the effects of tobacco control policies and tobacco prices on the initiation of smoking among young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Published 26.10.2023 at 11:19
On World No Tobacco Day, a round table on the topic of "A Society Without Tobacco: Tax Policies and Public Health" was held in the hall of the Rectorate of the University of Banja Luka. The round table was an opportunity to present previous research results from the team of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Banja Luka in the field of taxing tobacco products, as well as the economic costs of smoking in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The research has been conducted since 2018 in partnership with the University of Illinois in Chicago, USA.
In addition to presenting the results, the round table gathered various stakeholders in the field of tobacco product control and anti-smoking efforts from both an economic and health aspect of this addiction disease. Representatives of the Committee for International Exchange of Medical Students of the Republic of Srpska - SaMSIC participated, who gave a presentation on the health consequences of smoking, as well as representatives from the Ministry of Health and Social Protection of the Republic of Srpska, Sara Dojcinovic, and from the Institute of Public Health of the Republic of Srpska, Dr. Dusanka Danojevic. Edwin Korman, a representative of the World Health Organization, joined the event in a virtual format and introduced the position of this international organization in the field of smoking control, as well as Mia Radovanovic, a representative of the EU delegation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
During the discussion, participants put forward several proposals for reducing the prevalence of smoking in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is one of the leading countries in the world in this negative statistic. Their views and proposals were also put forward by representatives of the Fiscal Council of the Republic of Srpska, as well as Jasmina Cekric, on behalf of the PROI organization, which advocates limiting the use of tobacco products in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The round table was an opportunity to send a message about the harmfulness of tobacco and tobacco products on World No Tobacco Day, as well as ways to combat their consumption, in order to raise awareness about this extremely widespread problem in the country.
Published 31.05.2023 at 15:24