The Africa Center for Tobacco Industry Monitoring and Policy Research (ATIM) has called on the National Assembly to urgently revisit the proposed amendments to Nigeria’s National Tobacco Control Act 2015, warning that the so-called “Tobacco Harm Reduction” provisions sought to be inserted into the Act threaten the country’s hard-won tobacco control gains.
In a statement to newsmen thru Robert Egbe,
Media and Communications Officer, of the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), yesterday, Sunday, August 9, 2026, ATIM commended the Nigerian tobacco control community’s rejection of the proposed changes, warning the proposals have the potential to weaken the country’s tobacco control framework and create loopholes for the tobacco industry to addict Nigerians, especially the youth, with nicotine and other “so-called non-combustible products.
The situation is especially disturbing given Nigeria’s strides in cutting smoking prevalence and its commitments under the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), the organization noted, writes Daily Independent.
“Instead of creating new policy openings to undermine those gains, Nigeria should be strengthening the measures that have helped reduce smoking,” ATIM said.
The organization said the amendment process was initially described as an effort to strengthen the implementation of the National Tobacco Control Act 2015, to fix identified shortcomings and remove gaps affecting developing tobacco and nicotine products.
However, ATIM observed that the harmonised Bill later considered by the House of Representatives introduced “Tobacco Harm Reduction” as one of the objectives of the legislation and set out distinct provisions for non-combustible products including electronic nicotine products and nicotine pouches.
The big change will require more transparency and public oversight, it said.
Tobacco Harm Reduction is viewed by tobacco control activists as a discredited tactic employed by the industry to lobby for the open marketing of nicotine products, including vapes, e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products (HTPs), smokeless nicotine pouches and other electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) under the guise of offering these addictive products as a way to help tobacco users quit.
The rate of adult smoking in Nigeria is presently estimated at about 5-6 per cent, a big improvement over past decades, ATIM said. GeoReference
It urged the Nigerian government to prioritise proven tobacco control measures, rather than risk reversing this progress, including comprehensive smoke-free environments, stronger taxation and health warnings, ban on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, improved cessation support, measures against illicit trade and stronger implementation of Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC.
The organization also warned that new nicotine products could give a new route into nicotine addiction, particularly for young people.
“There is nothing stopping Nigeria from rolling out evidence-based cessation or risk-reduction interventions where they have been independently shown to benefit population health, ATIM said. “But there is no need to enshrine a changing and contested commercial concept like ‘Tobacco Harm Reduction’ as a statutory objective.”
ATIM also urged the National Assembly to provide greater clarification on the inclusion of the clauses on “Tobacco Harm Reduction” and non-combustible products in the harmonised Bill.
It said it has not shown the tobacco industry created or prompted the insertion of the restrictions but said their source should be publicly revealed given the growing commercial value of new nicotine products to global tobacco firms.
The organization called for the disclosure of the stakeholders who proposed the relevant provisions, the submissions received during the legislative process, the meetings held with representatives of the tobacco and nicotine industry or organisations representing their interests, and the evidence used to develop the differentiated regulatory framework.
It emphasised the specific significance of such transparency under Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC, which calls on governments to protect tobacco control programs from the economic and other entrenched interests of the tobacco industry.
ATIM also called on tobacco control organisations, researchers, professional associations and public health advocates in Africa to closely monitor developments in Nigeria, warning that the country’s legislation could set an important precedent for tobacco control policy elsewhere on the continent.
“Nigeria has made tremendous strides in reducing smoking. The challenge today is to fast track that progress toward a genuinely smoke free generation, not create new prospects for nicotine addiction or reopen policy space for an industry whose commercial survival increasingly depends on new nicotine products, ATIM stated.
The organization consequently called on the National Assembly to ensure that any revision to the Tobacco Control Act strengthens, not undermines Nigeria’s public health protections and remains fully aligned with the WHO FCTC.
Last Thursday, CAPPA, Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance (NTCA), Gatefield Impact, Nigerian Cancer Society, Association of Resident Doctors, Abuja and other members of the Nigerian Tobacco Control Community demanded immediate withdrawal of the Bill and called on the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu to withhold assent if the text is presented for executive approval. Geographical Reference
About the Author
