Gov’t urged to crack down on illicit cigarettes, vapes as youth smoking doubles

The Philippine government should intensify its crackdown on the smuggling of illegal cigarettes and vapes, as it is the main culprit behind the doubling of youth smokers in just two years, according to a public health advocate.

“The country faces both an overwhelmed health system and a new generation locked into nicotine addiction,” Bencyrus G. Ellorin, convenor of Pinoy Aksyon for Governance and the Environment Inc., said in a statement.

“We ask the government to look into this crisis deeply and implement laws,” he added.

Pinoy Aksyon said that the government loses at least P40 billion annually from these illicit trades.

It also noted that one out of five cigarettes sold in the Philippines comes from illegal sources due to the country’s weak enforcement and porous borders. The existence of online shopping platforms has also made the illicit items widely available among the youth.

From this illegal trade, illicit cigarette packs can sell for as low as P40 a pack; three times more inexpensive than taxed brands, which sell for P130 per pack, the health advocate said.

“This drastically lowers the price barrier for price-sensitive teens, resulting in a generation initiated into smoking earlier and more cheaply, with addiction rates climbing sharply,” Pinoy Aksyon said.

The number of Filipino youths aged 10 to 19 who smoke has doubled, rising to 4.8% in 2023 from 2.3% in 2021, indicating a looming health crisis, according to a report from the Food and Nutrition Institute (FNRI).

The rise was most pronounced among older teens, with nearly 14% of 18 to 19-year-olds smoking, while the share of youth smokers who vape jumped from 7.5% to nearly 40% during the same period.

Among adults, the same trend was observed, with smoking prevalence rising to 23.2% in 2023 from only 18.5% in 2021, the first increase since 2005.

This is despite the country’s commitment to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and the enactment of various tobacco-control measures. — Edg Adrian A. Eva