Indonesia could lose Rp 300b from illegal cigarettes
Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 11/10/2010 12:42 PM
A recent study conducted by the Gajah Mada University
shows that Indonesia could lose up to Rp 300 billion (US$ 3.3 million) due to falsified
cigarette excise this year.
“It means the excise revenue this year may decline
by 1 percent,” Elan Satriawan, a university researcher, said Wednesday during a
discussion on illegal cigarettes in Indonesia.
Elan added that Indonesia expects to net Rp 57
trillion from cigarette excise this year.
Researchers conducted the survey in 256 villages in 16
provinces, collecting 18,200 packets of cigarettes.
From the samples, researchers found most of illegal
cigarettes were distributed in West Sulawesi.
However, the survey showed that the proportion of
cigarettes that were illegal in Indonesia had declined to 6.24 percent from 8.5
percent last year.
