To draw up the classification of the countries that drink the most alcohol in the world, we take into consideration the data collected by Our World Data, which analyzed the consumption of alcohol in the individual countries of the world for each citizen over the age of 15.

Here are the top 10 countries that drink the most alcohol:

1. Seychelles – 20.50 litres;

2. Uganda – 15.09 litres;

3. Czechia – 14.45 litres;

4. Lithuania – 13.22 litres;

5. Luxembourg – 12.94 litres;

6. Germany – 12.9 litres;

7. Ireland – 12.88 litres;

8. Latvia – 12.77 litres;

9. Spain – 12.72 litres;

10. Bulgaria – 12.65 litres.

Second place goes to Uganda, where a beer at the bar costs an average of 0.87 dollars.

On top of this infamous achievement, according to the Euromonitor Illicit Alcohol Trade report, only 35.5 per cent of alcohol, which translates to 543,331 litres, is legal. More than half of alcoholic drinks on the Ugandan market are illegal with some not fit for consumption, according to Uganda Alcohol Industry Association.

In details presented in the Euromonitor Illicit Alcohol Trade report at the launch of the Mind Your Drink campaign in Kampala, it was revealed that at least 64.5 per cent of alcoholic drinks on the market are illegal and lack standards that are fit for consumption. The 64.5 per cent, the report notes, translates into at least 987,905 litres of the total industry consumption size of 1.53 million litres that was consumed between 2017 and 2020.

The report captures industry activity and tax losses between 2017 and 2020 due to an expanding illicit alcohol market, which is estimated to be growing at an average of 9.1 per cent annually. The report also noted that 45.4 per cent of consumed illicit beverages are homemade, popularly known as waragi, which presents a larger danger to human health, especially in rural areas.

At least 266,044 litres of illicit beverages, the report notes, are counterfeits, while 36,153 litres are smuggled into the country. The value of illicit alcoholic drinks, according to the report, is worth $1.91b (Shs7.25 trillion), for which it is estimated that the government lost an average of $458m (Shs17.3b) in taxable revenue between 2017 and 2020.

Consumption of illicit alcohol has been growing with a number of fatal cases reported in the last 10 years. Therefore, members of the Uganda Alcohol Industry Association announced in Kampala that they had started a campaign in which they will dialogue with different stakeholders to formulate actions on how to fight illicit alcohol consumption.