• Discussion focuses on need to push for the lifting of the taxes imposed on menstrual products and their raw materials in order to ensure accessibility for the vulnerable via affordability  

The imposition of taxes on menstrual hygiene products, needed by women and girls due to a biological process naturally occurring in their body, has been subjected to fair criticism from many parties. While there have been great demands for the Government to remove the taxes imposed on menstrual products and the raw materials needed to manufacture such, such items are currently subjected to a tax rate of 51.07%, and it continues to restrict the access of those menstruating to sanitary products.

It is women who have mostly felt the brunt of the rise in the prices of goods and services due to the economic crisis which emerged owing to reasons such as wrong economic policies adopted by the rulers and the Covid-19 pandemic. Women take great care to meet the household needs by managing what is earned by the families' breadwinners. In such a backdrop, many parties have questioned how fair and ethical it is to raise government revenue by imposing taxes on menstrual products, an essential commodity for women.

Discussion

The Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka (FPA) had, with the support of the Advocata Institute, organised a panel discussion on the topic ‘Axe the period tax’, in an attempt to bring everyone's attention to work for the elimination of taxes on sanitary products. The event, which was held in line with the International Women's Day, included an overview of period product taxation in Sri Lanka followed by a panel discussion. Among the panellists were Opposition Parliamentarian, Dr. Harsha de Silva, the United Nations Population Fund's (UNFPA) National Programme Analyst on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Sarah Soysa, and the Health Promotion Bureau’s (HPB) Director, Dr. Ranjith Batuwanthudawe. The discussion was moderated by the Colombo Urban Lab Founder and Director, Iromi Perera.

Representatives of the FPA and the Advocata Institute pointed out that the affordability of sanitary napkins and its significant impact on the welfare of women and girls including girls in Sri Lanka has become more pronounced in recent years. According to them, the issue is particularly evident due to the decline in the purchasing power stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic crisis. Revealing that approximately four million Sri Lankans have descended into poverty since 2019, making the total number of Sri Lankans living in poverty approximately seven million, the FPA and the Advocata Institute stated that it is therefore necessary to examine the ramifications of the lack of affordability of sanitary napkins which is worsened by the high taxes imposed on them. "In Sri Lanka, menstrual products have incurred high taxation rates. Prior to 2018, menstrual products were subjected to a tax rate of 101.2%, and the current rate is 51.07%. Despite having ratified free trade agreements (FTAs) with countries like India, from which Sri Lanka imports menstrual hygiene products and the related raw material, these products are on the negative list. This means that despite the FTAs being in place, menstrual hygiene products are still subjected to normal duties," an overview provided by the FPA and the Advocata Institute read. According to them, the total tax rate on sanitary products stood at 101.2% by early 2018, 62.6% by late 2018, 52% in 2019, 53.62% in 2021 (post-budget), 42.8% by April, 2022 (post-general duty removal), 25.6% by April of last year (2023) (post-value added tax [VAT] removal), and 51.07% under the current tax structure (with the latest VAT revision).

Speaking during the event, a Research Analyst of the Advocata Institute Thathsaranie Siriwardane said that they had conducted an analysis utilising the Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) to calculate Sri Lanka's household period poverty rate, aiming to understand the accessibility of sanitary napkins for menstruating women and girls. "Our findings reveal that in 2016, the household period poverty rate stood at approximately 50%. This suggests that roughly half of the households with menstruating women and girls don’t include sanitary napkins in their household expenditure. By 2019, the household period poverty rate had decreased to around 40%, indicating an improvement. These figures however reflect the situation prior to the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing economic crisis with extremely high inflation," she explained.  

Low-cost approach

Dr. de Silva said that they had already shown to the Government that it would not cost much to eliminate the taxes on sanitary products, and that the net result of doing so would be positive. "The revenue earned by the Government by imposing taxes on sanitary products is 0.0002% of the total tax revenue. It is not a significant revenue." He also said that a programme to provide all school girls in the menstruating age with sanitary napkins, could be launched at a significantly low cost. "We have done the relevant calculations. It costs only about Rs. 11 billion to provide all school girls of menstruating age with sanitary napkins. However, as there may also be mothers who don’t want their children to get it free, and are able to spend on it by themselves, the cost comes down to around Rs.4-5 billion. Is this something that is not possible to do? This is a solvable issue." Emphasising on the need for a stronger voice to convince the decision makers to eliminate the tax on sanitary products, he attributed such a struggle to be cause worthy. "It is not that difficult to show that its net outcome is positive. If civil society and all of us get together, it is possible to make a change. Since the elections are also coming, politicians will be more willing to do it. The timing is right."

Soysa, who is engaged in a range of research and programmes related to the issue, made the following remarks: "The lack of access to sanitary products affects females in various ways, with their health being one of the key aspects. For them to be physically, mentally, and psychologically healthy as well as to engage in their day-to-day activities, menstrual health and hygiene is very important. However, we have seen school girls being unable to attend schools and working females, particularly those at free trade zones (FTZs), being unable to go to work because of period poverty. We have spoken with civil society partners, researchers and several other categories of stakeholders, and there is enough data to say that this issue significantly affects females."

A number of participants were of the opinion that the Government can get more economic benefits by eliminating the taxes on sanitary products than continuing to have them imposed. By making sanitary products tax free, they said that women and girls  would be able to engage in their education and careers without any interruptions, and that through that, their (women’s) contribution to the economy could be increased to a significant level. In response to a query by a participant, Siriwardane said that no numerical data had been collected thus far on how the contribution of women to the country's economy would be increased through that, but that they would conduct research on it in the future and make the findings accessible to the public.

Coming out of closet

A participant said that although the price hikes of other commodities are openly discussed in the society, this issue is not discussed as many people are somewhat reluctant to talk about such. "Most females and school children hide this topic, but this is an issue which requires a broad social discussion. When it comes to the school girls, providing food and other essentials comes first for the parents and they may think twice about spending on sanitary products. It has a serious impact on the school girls' physical and mental wellbeing." If the Government was to remove the taxes on sanitary products and related material at some point, she said that it should be a lasting solution, and that unlike what happened in the past, there should be a programme to ensure that the benefits of such a move go to the real victims of this issue, women and girls, and not to large scale manufacturers or traders.

It was also outlined by the FPA and the Advocata Institutes that para tariffs (Ports and Airport Development Levy [PAL] and Cess) imposed on sanitary napkins remained in effect throughout the years, despite the Government issuing a gazette notification in 2023 and this year (2024), exempting various commodities from the PAL. According to them, the list had encompassed exemptions for items such as firearms, aircrafts, clothing, and several others, yet, notably excluded sanitary napkins. They attributed the decision not to extend the said exemption to an essential item such as sanitary napkins to be a clear policy oversight.

Dr. Batuwanthudawe highlighted the need for more Ministries other than the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education to get involved in the discussions pertaining to menstruation and period poverty. He further emphasised the need for more data to use for policy changes and the need for more involvement from civil society.

Several short- and long-term solutions such as the elimination of taxes on sanitary napkins to reduce costs, to foster improved menstrual hygiene practices, the removal of the current 18% VAT on the raw materials used for local sanitary napkin production to allow local manufacturers to reduce production costs and thereby reduce overall prices, the implementation of overall trade policy reforms including a permanent list of tax exempted commodities, the distribution of sanitary napkins to economically disadvantaged families with a particular focus on the school girls until the related taxes are removed, and the establishment of a dedicated policy action group to collectively advocate for the removal of taxes on sanitary products which will serve as a unified voice to push forward legislative changes and policy reforms aimed at axing the taxes on sanitary napkins and related items, were proposed during the event.