Written by Alberto Gomez Hernandez, Policy Manager at the World Vapers Alliance
Vietnam is at a turning point in its fight against smoking. With over 17 million smokers and over a hundred thousand lives lost to smoking-related illnesses annually, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Yet, instead of adopting proven harm reduction strategies to help smokers quit, Vietnam passed a law in late November to introduce harmful Verbote on vaping and heated tobacco products after facing intense pressure from Bloomberg Philanthropies and its allies.
Bloomberg Philanthropies, led by Michael Bloomberg, has been a leading force behind global anti-vaping campaigns. While it claims to act in the name of public health, its policies often undermine harm reduction efforts and leave smokers with no viable alternatives to quit. Even more troubling is Bloomberg’s outsized influence over the World Health Organization (WHO), which pushes an anti-vaping agenda that ignores scientific evidence and fails to serve the public health interests of countries like Vietnam.
WHO and Bloomberg: An alliance of hypocrisy
The WHO, heavily funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, has consistently advocated for restrictive policies on vaping and other harm reduction tools. This influence has led to a one-fits-all prohibitionist approach that disregards the needs of different individuals and countries. In Vietnam, this alliance has manifested in pressure to establish bans on vaping and heat-not-burn, depriving millions of smokers of access to less harmful alternatives.
The hypocrisy of this relationship was recently highlighted in a Facebook post that revealed how officials from the World Health Organisation’s office in Vietnam thanked Bloomberg’s organizations for its generous support, who allegedly allowed them to provide technical assistance to the government to combat smoking and the uptake of other nicotine products. At the same time, the government has ignored the voices of millions of users of e-cigarettes in the country that managed to quit smoking thanks to these new devices. While they publicly demonize harm reduction tools, they fail to address the core issues of smoking and its devastating health impacts.
The push from Bloomberg Philanthropies and the WHO represents a form of regulatory colonialism, where foreign entities dictate policies without considering the unique challenges of individual countries. Vietnam deserves the autonomy to craft policies that prioritize the health and well-being of its people, not the agendas of external organizations.
The costs of prohibition
Prohibitionist policies, like those pushed by Bloomberg and the WHO, often backfire. In countries where vaping is banned or heavily restricted, consumers turn to unregulated black-market products, which lack safety standards and pose greater risks. These products are potentially dangerous and can bring higher costs to the Vietnamese healthcare system. When users do not turn to these products, they switch back to smoking, increasing the burden of smoking-related illnesses on the state budget. On the other hand, countries like the UK, Sweden, and New Zealand have demonstrated that regulating safer alternatives and promoting them as less harmful can reduce smoking rates, lower costs and ultimately save lives.
The Case for Harm Reduction in Vietnam
Harm reduction works. In Sweden, the adoption of snus—a safer nicotine alternative—has led the country to the brink of becoming the first smoke-free nation in the world. The United Kingdom and New Zealand have seen significant reductions in smoking rates by embracing vaping as a tool for quitting. These success stories show that evidence-based policies save lives.
Vietnam could follow this path. By regulating vaping and heated tobacco products, the government can provide smokers with safer options, reduce tobacco-related deaths, and alleviate the strain on its healthcare system. Regulation ensures product safety, restricts access for minors, and encourages adult smokers to make healthier choices.
It’s time for Vietnam to reject harmful foreign interference and embrace policies that put its citizens first. By adopting harm reduction strategies, Vietnam can lead the way in Southeast Asia and show the world that progress is possible when science and public health take precedence over ideology and hypocrisy.
