Kenya urged to adopt Swedish approach to reduce tobacco-related deaths

Nairobi — Kenya is urged to adopt the Swedish Tobacco Harm Reduction (THR) approach to reduce the prevalence of active tobacco smokers and, consequently, reduce the number of tobacco-related deaths.

Tobacco harm reduction experts who spoke at a two-day workshop in Nairobi highlighted that Kenya could save the lives of 184,000 Kenyans by implementing tobacco harm reduction strategies. These strategies would encourage smokers to switch to less risky nicotine products, ultimately leading them to quit smoking.

Sweden is set to become the world’s first “smoke-free” country by the end of the year. This success is attributed to its decision to adopt tobacco harm reduction policies. As a result, Swedish smokers have switched from traditional tobacco products to less harmful nicotine alternatives.

Data from Quit Like Sweden, a global lobby that advocates for countries to adopt tobacco harm reduction to support adults seeking to quit smoking, reveals that the average smoking rate in Sweden is five times lower than that of the European Union (EU).

As a result, the cancer rate in Sweden is 40% lower than in the rest of the EU. Additionally, there are 21.1% fewer smoking-related deaths in Sweden compared to the EU.

Last week, a report by international and local tobacco harm reduction experts, titled “Saving 600,000 Lives in Nigeria and Kenya,” predicted that Kenya could reduce tobacco-related deaths from the current 8,000 to 3,400 by 2060 if it adopted tobacco harm reduction strategies.

Commenting on the report’s findings, Derek Yach, co-author of the report and former head of the Smoke-Free Foundation, said: “Our research shows that tobacco harm reduction is the missing piece in Kenya’s fight against the consequences of smoking. Kenya has the chance to follow in the footsteps of countries like Sweden and New Zealand, where safer alternatives have significantly reduced smoking rates and saved lives.