Coalition urges lawmakers to recall the 2025 amendment bill, warning that looser rules could increase young people’s exposure to nicotine products

A coalition of Nigerian tobacco control organisations on Thursday, August 6, 2026, called for the immediate recall of the National Tobacco Control Act (Amendment) Bill, 2025, warning that the proposed changes could weaken existing safeguards and increase exposure to tobacco and nicotine products, particularly among young people.

Also read: Rivers Strengthens Tobacco Control Amid Rising Youth Use

The organisations urged relevant committees of the National Assembly to recall the bill and called on President Bola Tinubu to withhold assent if the legislation reaches his desk.

The coalition argued that the proposed amendments would move Nigeria away from the public health principles established under the National Tobacco Control Act, 2015, by creating what it described as a more permissive regulatory environment for electronic cigarettes, heated tobacco products, nicotine pouches and other non-combustible products.

“The bill must not advance, regardless of its current administrative stage after passage through the National Assembly,” the coalition said.

The groups’ concerns centre on what they regard as a fundamental distinction the bill creates between conventional tobacco products and newer nicotine products.

They argued that some provisions could effectively give heated tobacco products and other non-combustible products regulatory treatment that is less restrictive than that applied to traditional cigarettes.

“In one of its most embarrassing contradictions, the bill defines non-combustible products to include heated tobacco products, then defines tobacco products to exclude all non-combustible products,” the coalition said.

“The legal effect is that a product containing actual tobacco would cease to be treated as a tobacco product merely because it is heated rather than burned.”

The organisations said such a distinction would conflict with the approach of the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which treats heated tobacco products as tobacco products requiring tobacco-control measures.

Nigeria became a party to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in 2005, while the National Tobacco Control Act was enacted in 2015 to provide a comprehensive legal framework for regulating tobacco products, including restrictions on advertising, promotion and sponsorship.

The coalition also raised concerns about proposed provisions that would allow tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship through adult publications, points of sale, online platforms and adult-oriented events.

The groups argued that the proposed definition of an adult publication, based on at least 50 per cent of its readership being aged 18 or above, would not necessarily prevent children and teenagers from being exposed to tobacco advertising.

They pointed to Nigeria’s youthful population as a particular reason for caution.

The organisations cited UNICEF data indicating that more than 60 per cent of Nigerians are below 30 years old, more than 70 per cent are below 35, while about 43 per cent are aged 15 or younger.

They also referenced a Nigerian Communications Commission study which they said found that 93 per cent of surveyed children aged 11 to 16 and 45 per cent of those aged four to 10 accessed the internet through their own mobile phones.

The coalition argued that those figures demonstrated the difficulty of creating an effective distinction between adult and youth audiences in an increasingly digital media environment.

“Against this reality, the supposed definition of ‘adult advertising’ would create a lawful route for tobacco and nicotine advertisements to reach young people through newspapers, magazines, blogs and digital platforms,” the organisations said.

Another major concern is the proposed treatment of sales and distribution.

The groups objected to provisions that they said would permit online sales, courier deliveries, retail displays and product sampling for non-combustible tobacco products.

“The industry could advertise online, display and sample products in shops, and deliver them to consumers’ homes,” the coalition said.

It questioned whether age-verification requirements could realistically prevent minors from accessing such products, particularly where transactions take place through digital platforms and delivery services.

The organisations also argued that Nigeria’s enforcement capacity would be tested by any expansion of online advertising, retail promotion and home delivery of tobacco and nicotine products.

They expressed further concern about provisions they said could weaken packaging requirements, reduce health-warning obligations and create uncertainty around penalties for breaches of the law.

The coalition also objected to proposed provisions that would allow manufacturers and tobacco companies to classify certain product information as trade secrets.

According to the groups, restricting access to such information could make independent scrutiny more difficult for researchers, health professionals and other public-interest actors seeking to assess the safety and characteristics of emerging nicotine products.

Another area of concern involves proposed powers for the Minister of Health to exempt certain products from statutory requirements on undefined public-interest grounds.

The coalition warned that broad exemption powers could create opportunities for regulatory capture and undermine consistent enforcement.

The groups are also questioning the transparency of the legislative process that produced the bill.

They called for the publication of committee reports, stakeholder memoranda, public-hearing records, voting records and other relevant documents associated with the legislation.

They further asked the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to clarify whether it supports the proposed amendment and explain how the legislation would align with Nigeria’s public health policies and international obligations.

The coalition’s position is that tobacco and nicotine products should remain under a single, comprehensive regulatory framework regardless of how the products are consumed.

It called for continued restrictions on advertising, promotion and sponsorship, as well as retail displays, promotional sampling and remote sales.

The groups also urged health professionals, civil society organisations, development partners and media organisations to speak out against the bill.

“This bill is a grave error. It must be recalled, rejected and stopped,” the coalition said.

The intervention reflects a broader global debate over how governments should regulate newer nicotine products.

While electronic cigarettes, heated tobacco products and nicotine pouches are often marketed as alternatives to conventional cigarettes, public health authorities continue to debate their risks, potential role in smoking cessation and implications for young people.

The WHO has maintained that countries should regulate emerging tobacco and nicotine products in ways that protect public health and prevent the normalisation of nicotine use among young people.

For Nigeria, the debate carries particular significance because of the country’s large young population and rapidly expanding digital marketplace.

The coalition’s objections do not by themselves determine the legal or public health merits of the proposed amendments.

Those questions remain subject to legislative consideration, stakeholder input and, potentially, further review before any new framework takes effect.

The immediate demand from the organisations is nevertheless clear: they want the bill recalled before it progresses further and are asking the President not to assent to it if it reaches the executive stage.

Also read: Illegal Tobacco Sales Distort Australia’s Economy

The coming legislative debate is therefore likely to focus not only on how Nigeria regulates newer nicotine products, but also on how effectively the country can balance innovation, commercial interests and the protection of young people from tobacco and nicotine exposure.