Islamabad: Rising tobacco and nicotine use among Pakistan’s youth, especially around educational institutions, emerged as the central concern at a national review session on tobacco control held by the Aurat Foundation in Islamabad.
Participants from Parliament, government departments, health organizations, and civil society warned that easy availability of cigarettes, vapes, nicotine pouches, and flavored tobacco near schools is creating a growing public health threat. The discussion also pointed to a noticeable increase in tobacco use among women, indicating a shifting trend.
The session called for stronger legislation, faster policy action, and strict enforcement to counter the rapid spread of emerging nicotine products. Speakers emphasized that existing laws remain poorly implemented due to procedural delays, weak monitoring, and limited coordination between federal and provincial bodies.
The need for clear parental awareness, community engagement, and better recognition of new nicotine products was highlighted as an essential part of early prevention. Officials noted that families and schools often remain unaware of modern products marketed to young people.
Technical briefings identified major enforcement gaps and policy loopholes that allow the tobacco industry to expand its reach. Participants noted that companies are increasingly using social media trends, entertainment content, and youth-focused marketing to promote vaping in urban areas.
Government representatives reaffirmed ongoing federal efforts to implement the Prohibition of Smoking and Protection of Non-Smokers Health Ordinance 2002 and to tighten regulations where required. Provincial representatives also announced plans to introduce new resolutions to strengthen tobacco control.
Education sector officials raised alarms over the rise of nicotine products around private institutions and called for tougher regulatory checks. Regulatory authorities stressed the need for a broader social movement to counter tobacco use nationwide.
Closing the event, the Aurat Foundation reiterated its commitment to evidence-based advocacy, cross-sector collaboration, and long-term public awareness initiatives aimed at building a healthier, tobacco-free society.ISLAMABAD, Jan 10: Pakistan government is anticipating more than US$10 billion investment from Saudi Arabia. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are signing different MoUs during the upcoming visit of Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman in next few weeks. This was disclosed in an important meeting today about facilitating business and investment in the country. Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired the meeting in which Finance Minister and others participated.
Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz would visit Pakistan in February 2019 and during his visit, most of the memorandum of understandings (MoUs) would be signed by the two countries, according to Corporate Ambassador.
Meanwhile, in an official press release issued by the Prime Minister Office today stated that in a briefing about various positive developments with regards to investment facilitation, it was informed that an MoU on industrial cooperation has been signed with China last month. The MoU with Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is expected to be signed this month whereas investment framework MoU with the UAE is expected in February 2019.”
The meeting was attended by the finance minister, Adviser to the PM on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood, PM’s adviser Dr Ishrat Hussain and the BoI chairman. The BoI chairman briefed the prime minister about the progress on various indicators related to ease of doing business.
The meeting was informed that the number of taxes had been brought down from 47 to 21. “We have clubbed together many taxes to facilitate the business community,” Mr Sharif added. He said a new system of value added tax refund would be in place by March 31 which would significantly reduce time in obtaining the VAT refund, adding that efforts were also being made to improve the risk-management system to reduce the number of physical audits.
About the ease of starting business, the prime minister was informed that integration of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan with provincial portals and Employees Old-Age Benefits Institution (EOBI) had been completed in Punjab and efforts were being made to expedite launch of such portal in Sindh.
The meeting was informed that significant progress had been made to facilitate provision of electricity and timely information to the businesses. Besides availability of required documents on website, a full online application system is being rolled out and advance notifications are being ensured about change in tariff, etc.
In the area of getting credit, the meeting was informed that registrar would be appointed by the end of this month and rules under the Secured Transaction Act were being finalised by the Ministry of Finance. The prime minister emphasised the need for greater focus on addressing issues relating to ease of doing business in Sindh since Karachi was financial hub of the country.
It was decided that regular meetings on EoDB would be chaired by the prime minister with participation of the chief ministers and chief secretaries. It was also decided that dedicated EoDB offices would be set up at federal and provincial levels for the purpose of removing bottlenecks and facilitating investors for smooth business operations.
