The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | British American Tobacco Uganda has recorded a 6% increase in revenues to Shs 99.5bn for the year ended Dece.31, 2022, but the profit after tax declined marginally to Shs 9.9bn.
The cigarettes distributor said the 4% decline in profit after tax was attributed to a surge in operational costs in line with higher sales volume and inflationary pressures.
On the other hand, taxes to the government in form of excise duty, VAT, Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and corporation tax increased by 4% to Shs56.1 billion driven by higher indirect taxes in line with sales volumes.
As such, the company’s Board of Directors has recommended a final dividend of Shs 209 per share subject to shareholders’ approval during the Annual General Meeting to be held on June.22.
Paul Mbuga, the Company Secretary said BATU’s performance demonstrates continued resilience amidst a challenging operating environment characterized by drought, floods and high inflation.
“These slowed down economic recovery, adversely impacted the trading environment and placed further pressure on consumers’ disposable incomes hence limiting purchasing power,” he said.
Mbuga said the prevalence of illicit trade in tax-evaded cigarettes, estimated at 29.4% continues to adversely impact legitimate industry revenue and deny the government tax revenues.
He called upon the government to increase resources towards enforcement of the Tobacco Control Act, 2015 and Tobacco Control Regulations, 2019, with regards to flavoured tobacco, packaging and labeling, to further address the growth of illicit cigarettes in the market.
