Senator Mumma’s Tobacco Control Amendment Bill bans safer alternatives, risking public health, fueling illicit trade, and killing jobs.
Senator Catherine Mumma’s Tobacco Control Amendment Bill 2024 is before senate, seeking to amend the existing Tobacco Control Act 2007 by putting in additional regulation on newer nicotine products. The Bill proposes banning or heavy regulation of flavoured vapes and nicotine pouches, tightening of authorization and licensing of these products, and increasing penalties for violation.
Here’s the problem. The bill is being sold as a health measure, but the truth is that it will do more harm than good. When you outlaw safer nicotine alternatives, you do not stop people from using them. You only push them into the shadows of the black market, which are run by criminals, where there are no rules, no protections, and no accountability.
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Three out of four Kenyans believe that banning vapes and nicotine pouches will only fuel illegal sales. Four out of five current users of safer alternatives agree that these products will go underground. This is not speculation rather the voices of the people who will be directly affected.
Kenya already struggles with illicit trade with nearly half of the cigarette market being controlled by the underworld. Do we want to give them even more business? Germany tried to ban nicotine pouches, and what happened? Over a million people now buy them illegally and that is exactly what unreasonble prohibition does. It drives people away from safer, regulated products and back into the arms of the black market. So, this Bill will make Kenya less safe, not more.
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There is also a human side to this. Smokers trying to quit deserve options that are less harmful than cigarettes. Flavoured vapes and nicotine pouches have helped many people transition away from smoking. CASA’s chairman, Joseph Magero for instance, is one of them having quit cigarettes using safer alternatives. Eighty-five percent of Kenyans believe that encouraging smokers to switch to safer products would help them quit, so Magero’s is not an isolated case. Nearly two-thirds of users say that the government should promote these alternatives and not blanket treat them the same as combustible cigarettes
The bill will not only affect health and lives, but also jobs. Kenya is strugglign with an unemployment crisis and instead of supporting industries that create jobs, bill such as these are only going to crush them. This will destroy legitimate businesses that employ thousands of Kenyans and for this reason and more, traders, bar owners, and retailers have already petitioned Parliament to halt this Bill until their voices are heard. Their livelihoods depend on sensible regulation, not the knee-jerk bans that we keep seeing from Government in response to subjects that require dialogue and mutual agreements.
The data speaks loudly. 83% of Kenyans support adopting tobacco harm reduction policies and the majority want regulation that makes safer alternatives accessible to adults while protecting the young. What they do not want are bans that enrich criminals, increase unemployment, and endanger public health.
The Senate must listen to the different voices and petitions from Kenyans and traders. This Bill is not about health, but rather about control. It ignores evidence, silences users, and threatens jobs.
Banning things has never stopped people from using them and this bill is no exception. Cutting down on safer nicotine alternatives will not save lives, but it will likely increase use of combustiible cigarette smoking and discourage those who are trying to stop.
The life-saving potential of smoke-free products depends on smart, balanced rules and regulations that will keep products available to adults but away from children. Anything less is a betrayal of public health and a betrayal of the people.
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