New Tobacco Bill Branded A “Gift to Criminals” As Survey Warns Of Black Market Surge

DAMNING nationwide research reveals that the new tobacco bill will fuel illicit trade, enrich criminals, and destroy honest jobs, while blocking access to safer nicotine alternatives that are supported by the overwhelming majority of consumers.

The Tobacco Control (Amendment) Bill 2024 seeks to ban flavoured vapes and nicotine pouches and impose punitive restrictions on other safer alternatives that help smokers to quit their deadly habit.

But instead of protecting public health, the Bill will push consumers towards the black market or back to cigarettes and wipe out legitimate, job-creating businesses, according to a survey by the Campaign for Safer Alternatives (CASA).

The study reveals widespread concern that bans and excessive restrictions will backfire:

• Three out of four (73%) of all respondents say banning vapes and nicotine pouches will lead to illegal sales and black-market growth, endangering consumers and the underage.
• Among users of safer alternatives, four out of five (81%) say that bans will push products underground, with just 1% strongly disagreeing.
• If flavours in safer alternatives are banned, more than half (52%) of users say they will easily find products on the black market, while only 7% expect it would be very difficult.

CASA chairman Joseph Magero, who quit cigarettes by switching to safer alternatives, said:

“Bans and excessive restrictions will only drive consumers to criminals, fuel unemployment and deepen poverty.

“We’ve seen prohibition fail worldwide: in Germany, banning the sale of nicotine pouches created a booming black market, with over a million people now buying illegally. Kenya’s illicit cigarette trade already controls 45% of the market, and this Bill will make a bad situation worse.”

The survey, which polled more than 1,000 adults nationwide, shows Kenyans are united in their support for safer nicotine alternatives, with 83% saying they would back the Government adopting tobacco harm reduction (THR) policies, while just 6% were opposed.

The survey findings come a week after Kenyan bar owners and retailers associations petitioned the Senate to halt further proceedings on the Bill until their demands, which included enhanced public participation on the proposed law, are met.

Similarly, the survey shows that there is strong awareness of THR and its public health benefits in Kenya:

• 85% of respondents believe that encouraging smokers to switch to safer alternatives would help them quit conventional cigarettes.
• Nearly two in three (63%) say the Government should run campaigns to promote switching to safer alternatives.
• Treating safer alternatives the same as combustible cigarettes “does not make sense”, say respondents.
• The fear that restrictions will lead to an increase in smoking rates is one of the main reasons cited for opposing the ban.

“The life-saving potential of smoke-free products depends on smart regulation,” Magero said. “CASA supports rules that prevent underage use but keep safer alternatives accessible and affordable for adults. Smokers must be given clear, unbiased information, not misleading claims equating these products to cigarettes.”

At the same time, the Bill runs counter to Kenyan voters’ most pressing national priority, which is the rising tide of unemployment.

Two out of three respondents (67%) identify unemployment as the country’s biggest challenge. Instead of fostering industries that could create employment, the government is moving to destroy them.

“Safer nicotine alternatives are saving lives and easing the public health burden around the world. Banning them in Kenya is a gift to the black market and a death sentence for thousands of smokers. It will endanger lives, deny smokers safer options, and destroy businesses that could employ thousands. Kenya must fight unemployment, not nicotine,” Magero added.

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