Foreign experts urge Vietnam to add e-cigarettes, heated tobacco to investment law’s prohibited list

The conference, organized by the Authority of Press under the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, provided updates on strengthening the enforcement of the National Assembly’s resolution prohibiting e-cigarettes and heated tobacco.

In 2024, the National Assembly passed Resolution 173, which bans the production, trade, import, and use of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco from 2025.

This move was hailed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a significant milestone for global public health.

However, several experts warned that the ban will only be effective if all forms of production and business activities related to these products are explicitly included in the list of prohibited sectors in the revised Investment Law, ensuring that no legal loopholes remain.

Speaking at the event, Dr. Angela Pratt, WHO representative in Vietnam, noted that the country is at a pivotal moment – either it fully protects young people or risks having its anti-tobacco efforts undermined by legal gaps.

She pointed to proposals that could weaken the ban, such as allowing production for export or not prohibiting heated tobacco products made from tobacco leaves.

She stressed the need for the revised Investment Law to reflect the ban without exceptions, helping avoid legal conflicts, enforcement challenges, and smuggling risks.

According to WHO, 42 countries now ban e-cigarettes, and 24 prohibit heated tobacco products.

Dr. Ulysses Dorotheo, executive director of the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance, highlighted global tobacco industry tactics aimed at weakening such bans.

These include lobbying with misleading information, covertly funding research groups to produce ‘reduced harm’ narratives, and suggesting exemptions for export production or tobacco-derived heated products.

He warned that allowing any exceptions in Vietnam could trigger smuggling, commercial fraud, and increased health and economic costs.

Experts recommended that all production and business activities involving e-cigarettes and heated tobacco be listed as prohibited in the Investment Law, with no permission for production for export.

E-cigarettes: Rising and dangerous trend among youth

Dang Khac Loi, deputy head of the Authority of Press, warned of the rapid spread of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco among young people.

He cited data from the Ministry of Health as indicating that the rate of e-cigarette use among students aged 13-17 tripled from 2.6 percent in 2019 to 8.2 percent in 2023.

Among 13-15-year-olds, the rate doubled in just one year.

Compact designs, bright colors, diverse flavors, and widespread online marketing have fueled an unprecedented surge in nicotine addiction among youth.

Nicotine is a highly addictive chemical compound present in a tobacco plant, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

All tobacco products contain nicotine, including cigarettes, non-combusted cigarettes (commonly referred to as heat-not-burn tobacco products or heated tobacco products), cigars, smokeless tobacco (such as dip, snuff, snus, and chewing tobacco), hookah tobacco, and most e-cigarettes.

Addressing the conference, Dr. Nguyen Trung Nguyen, director of the Poison Control Center at Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi, explained that traditional cigarettes contain 1.5-3 percent nicotine, whereas e-cigarettes can contain 35-69 mg/ml, dozens of times higher.

Marketed as ‘less harmful,’ ‘high-tech,’ or ‘youth-friendly,’ these products pose a far greater risk of strong nicotine addiction and serious damage to the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, as well as to adolescent brain development, he said.

He reported that many patients hospitalized for e-cigarette poisoning present with brain injuries, and even individuals without symptoms often show signs of lung and neurological damage during comprehensive examinations.

“These are serious consequences when we do not intervene promptly,” he warned.