Home Affairs Deputy Minister Calls for Stronger Commitment on Tobacco Control to Protect Young Generation

Deputy Home Affairs Minister Bima Arya Sugiarto has stressed the need for a strong national-level commitment to tobacco control, responding to findings by DPRemaja 4.0 regarding rampant violations of cigarette advertising regulations in a number of regions. “Our challenge is very serious, because the latest data shows 7.4 percent of Indonesian children are already active smokers, coupled with a significant rise in the trend of e-cigarettes among teenagers,” Bima said in Jakarta on Wednesday. As of July 2025, 23 districts and cities had not yet completed their Smoke-Free Area (KTR) regional regulations, meaning 96 percent of regions already have written rules. However, the biggest challenge lies in law enforcement and on-the-ground supervision. For example, in North Lombok, 354 cigarette advertising points were found in three sub-districts, namely Bayan, Pemenang, and Tanjung. Of that number, 314 advertisements, or 88.7 percent, violated the 500-metre school radius, and 42 percent of the advertisements displayed cheap prices. Additionally, in Jakarta, 254 cigarette advertising points were found in three sub-districts: Cilincing, Matraman, and Tanah Abang. The impact is that 86,541 children are exposed to cigarette advertising in these three sub-districts, and cigarettes constitute the second-highest household expenditure. The issue of tobacco control, Bima said, is not just about the health sector, but is part of governance that favours the quality of life of its citizens. He assessed that this regional commitment must not stop on paper or be merely a formal declaration without implementation. He stated that today’s task is to popularise the tobacco control issue, which is deemed unpopular, because it is crucial for protecting future generations. “The Ministry of Home Affairs is fully committed to ensuring regional regulations are synchronised and enforced without compromise up to the central level,” he said. Meanwhile, Benget Saragih, Acting Head for Tobacco-Related Disease Control at the Directorate of Non-Communicable Disease Prevention and Control of the Ministry of Health, technically explained that barriers to implementing national regulations in the regions are due to industry intervention. “Many regional heads are hesitant to act, due to disturbances from the cigarette industry, which always claims to contribute 10 percent of the state budget through excise. In fact, the technical rules in Government Regulation No. 28 of 2024 are very clear in banning the sale and installation of cigarette advertising within a 500-metre radius of educational facilities,” he said. To strengthen this rule, his team, together with the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, the Ministry of Religious Affairs, and the Ministry of Home Affairs, has issued a Joint Circular. In addition, they conduct monthly evaluations directly with regents and mayors to monitor the synchronisation of their regional rules.