This archive report was first published on 27 September 2019.
Published on September 27, 2019, a date when tobacco firms were rushing to popularise the use of e-cigarettes as a safer alternative to combustible smoking amid a severe onslaught from health experts and consumer regulators.
Kenya, with about three million smokers, has no clear policy to guide or regulate the use of e-cigarettes, despite their availability in the market. The country's lack of regulation is concerning, especially given the global health concerns surrounding vaping.
Speakers at the Global Tobacco and Nicotine Forum in Washington DC sought to dispel health claims, insisting they are not scientifically proven. However, the US government recently announced plans to ban all flavoured e-cigarettes following the deaths and an increase in lung illnesses.
Experts at the forum, including Marc Firestone, Vice President for external affairs at Phillip Morris International, argued that vaping was under threat due to negative publicity. Scott Ballin, an expert in tobacco and public health, added that the discussion around e-cigarettes had become 'irrational, toxic and ideological.'
E-cigarettes are battery-operated devices that people use to inhale an aerosol containing nicotine, flavourings and other chemicals. They are marketed as safer than combustible tobacco and are popular among teenagers in developed countries.
However, many countries, including Brazil, Singapore, the Seychelles, Uruguay and India, have banned e-cigarettes due to fears they could engender nicotine addiction among teenagers. Africa, with an estimated 77 million smokers, was not represented at the Washington Forum.
