In Malaysia, Kivu International is partnering with the Social and Economic Research Initiative (SERI) to strengthen tobacco taxation and regulatory enforcement, contributing to Malaysia’s first tobacco tax increase in over a decade after a prolonged period of policy stagnation.
The programme supports SERI to produce timely, politically relevant research, deliver targeted engagement with policymakers, and shape public discourse around tobacco tax reform. This includes key interventions such as SERI’s sole civil society survey on public perceptions of tobacco taxation, used strategically to counter tobacco industry narratives that tax increases lack public support or inevitably fuel illicit trade; the findings were amplified through national media and referenced in Parliament by an MP during discussions on excise and enforcement. Alongside this, SERI secured one-to-one consultations with the Ministry of Finance, engaged parliamentarians ahead of budget cycles, and built credibility across health, finance, and civil society networks. By embedding itself in Malaysia’s policy windows, the programme is contributing to evidence-based, health-oriented tobacco control – in a country where tobacco taxes have remained stagnant for over a decade.
Building on the success of Year 1, the partnership is now focused on consolidating gains and advancing deeper reforms in Year 2 through sustained excise progression. In Year 2, Kivu International has also partnered with the Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy to broaden technical engagement and strengthen policy influence across Malaysia’s health and fiscal reform ecosystem.