- Legislation has outrun implementation. Flat adult prevalence and a resurgent illicit market show that law alone has not changed behaviour.
- No independent institution held the line. The National Tobacco Control Board is a government body, and the country's health NGOs work across many causes, not tobacco specifically.
- Government has invited a civil-society partner. The announced national cessation programme is to be delivered through civil society organisations.
- The window is open now, not indefinitely. Two decades of advocacy and this policy juncture will not coincide again soon.
Strong laws. Weak follow-through.
The Maldives has legislated faster and further on tobacco than almost any country: a generational ban, a full e-cigarette ban and an outright advertising ban. But the same period has seen adult smoking stay flat, an illicit market overtake the legal one, and, in July 2026, Parliament unanimously reverse the tax increase that underpinned the whole reform.
No organisation in the Maldives was independently responsible for watching that line. BREATHE was founded to be that organisation: independent of government and of the tobacco industry, and dedicated to tobacco and nicotine control alone.
Sixteen years of legislation, then one fast final push
The Tobacco Control Act of 2010 laid the framework. Almost nothing changed at pace until 2024–2025, when three amendments arrived within a year: the minimum age was raised to 21, e-cigarettes were banned outright, and in May 2025 the world's first generational tobacco ban was passed. Fourteen months later, Parliament reversed course on price, the one lever every WHO review calls the most effective.
- 2010Tobacco Control Act: first framework, smoke-free places, advertising ban.
- Nov 2024Minimum age raised to 21. Cigarette import duty doubled to MVR 8 per stick.
- Dec 2024Full ban on e-cigarettes and vaping devices; police given seizure powers.
- May 2025Generational ban ratified: no sale to anyone born on or after 1 January 2007.
- Nov 2025Generational ban in force. Duty-free tobacco allowances tightened.
- Jul 2026Duty halved to MVR 4 per stick; ad valorem rate cut from 50% to 30%.
What has worked
- Smoke-free places and an outright advertising ban remain in force, largely uncontested.
- The e-cigarette ban has been enforced with real teeth: seizure powers and high fines.
- The generational ban earned WHO recognition and international endorsement.
- Two major amendments passed within 13 months, proof that the Majlis can move fast on tobacco.
Consumption did not disappear. It moved to a channel no one is watching, taxing or measuring.
Why legislation alone has not been enough
Enforcement has not kept pace with the law
Roughly four in ten Maldivian men still smoke daily, a figure two decades of legislation has not meaningfully moved. Customs and market surveillance, spread across nearly 200 inhabited islands, could not contain the illicit trade even as legal imports fell by three quarters. Consumption moved channels; it did not fall.
A strong score, now under pressure
The Maldives improved from 49 to 39 in the Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index, ranking joint 8th of 100 countries in 2025. That assessment closed in March 2025, before a major tobacco tax decision was taken on unpublished evidence. No Maldivian body monitors Article 5.3 full-time, keeps a public register of industry contacts, or tests official revenue and smuggling claims independently. That evidence gap shaped the July 2026 debate.
No standing institution was responsible for holding the line
The National Tobacco Control Board sits inside government and cannot independently monitor the state's own decisions. The country's health NGOs work across many causes, and none is dedicated to tobacco control or resourced to monitor it full-time. The Ministry of Health is subject to the same fiscal and political pressure the evidence above describes.
What the government got right
Removing import duty on nicotine replacement therapy makes quitting cheaper, and the national cessation campaign launched in mid-2026 plans to work through civil society. Both deserve support, and a credible partner to build on them.
No one was watching the line full-time
Every existing body touching tobacco control in the Maldives has a mandate that stops short of independent, full-time oversight.
| Body | Mandate | Limitation |
|---|---|---|
| National Tobacco Control Board | Government coordinating body | Cannot monitor the state's own decisions |
| Health NGOs, generally | Broad health advocacy across many causes | Tobacco is one priority among many |
| Ministry of Health | Policy design and implementation | Part of the same fiscal and political cycle |
| BREATHE | Article 5.3 monitoring, research and policy papers | Tobacco and nicotine control is its only mandate |
An independent body to hold the line
Our mission is to protect and advance evidence-based tobacco control in the Maldives through independent research, policy advocacy and public engagement, insulated from the political and fiscal cycles that have reversed past gains.
- Research & monitoring. Article 5.3 industry interference tracking, independent economic modelling, and data on prevalence and enforcement. First output: Industry Watch Report No. 01, the Maldives' first independent industry interference report.
- Policy advocacy. Position papers for the Majlis and ministries, and a standing voice when tax, trade or licensing rules are debated. First output: Policy Brief No. 01, Price is policy, on the July 2026 duty reversal.
- Public engagement. Partnership in the national cessation programme, coalition-building, and public communication grounded in evidence. First output: a proposal to government to serve as a cessation-programme delivery partner.
Work with us
Tobacco control is stronger with more voices behind it. BREATHE welcomes collaboration with researchers, health professionals, educators, civil-society organisations, young people and government. Get in touch.
This statement draws on published legislation, parliamentary and trade-press reporting, the Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index, and Maldives Customs Service data as reported 2021–2026. Figures from news and parliamentary reporting are treated as indicative pending official publication.
- Tobacco Control Act (Law 15/2010) and First and Second Amendments, 2024–2025. The President's Office, Maldives.
- Tobacco Reporter (2026). Coverage of Maldives duty-reduction bill, import volumes and cessation programme.
- The Standard Maldives; Maldives Independent (2026). Reporting on Parliament's duty-reduction bill, revenue and smuggling figures.
- Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control (2025). Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index 2025: Maldives country profile. globaltobaccoindex.org/country/MV
- WHO. Global Youth Tobacco Survey, Maldives 2019 fact sheet.
- WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, Article 5.3.
How to cite
BREATHE (2026). A civil voice for tobacco control. Founding Statement. Malé: BREATHE.