#TIIDWI2025 No. 7 | #WNTD2025KE | #WCTC2025

As the world prepares to mark World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) 2025 on May 31, a day recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) to highlight the dangers of tobacco and advocate for effective policies to reduce its use, the tobacco and nicotine industry is once again attempting to hijack the narrative.

This year’s theme, “Unmasking the Appeal: Exposing Industry Tactics on Tobacco and Nicotine Products,” couldn’t be more timely or accurate. The tobacco and nicotine industry is promoting something called “World Vape Day” which they claim is to be celebrated on May 30.  Let us be clear: this day is a fabrication. It is not recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations (UN), or any legitimate international health body.

❗ What Is “World Vape Day”?

“World Vape Day,” is not a globally recognized health observance. It is not endorsed by the WHO, the United Nations, or any credible international health body. Instead, it is a public relations creation of the tobacco and nicotine industry, designed to distract, confuse, and dilute the impact of World No Tobacco Day.

Unlike legitimate international days, which are declared through formal processes involving UN bodies or global consensus, “World Vape Day” is industry-invented—a strategic move to rebrand harmful nicotine products as tools of harm reduction, while continuing to expand their market.

The deliberate timing of May 30 is not a coincidence—it is a tactic. It attempts to dominate headlines just before WNTD, weakening its impact and confusing the public discourse. This is not the first time the industry has used pseudo-health narratives to sidestep regulations and mislead the youth.

By placing “World Vape Day” just one day before WNTD, the industry seeks to:

• Shift media attention away from tobacco control efforts.
• Confuse the public by promoting vapes and nicotine pouches as “safer” alternatives.
• Reframe the narrative from quitting tobacco to switching products.

This is not harm reduction—it’s harm redirection.

🧠 A Closer Look: Who Is Behind It?

One of the most prominent promoters of World Vape Day is Ziauddin Islam, whose LinkedIn post celebrates vaping as a means of “harm reduction.” But this is deeply misleading. Islam, a known industry figure, consistently ignores the mounting evidence that:

• Nicotine itself is harmful to developing brains
• Vaping is associated with respiratory and cardiovascular risks
• Most users of vapes are not adult smokers trying to quit—but rather youths who never smoked before

In fact, the true intention behind promoting vaping and other “smokeless” products is not cessation—it’s market expansion. It’s about creating new addiction pathways, particularly among vulnerable youth populations in Africa and Asia.

🔥 BAT’s World Vape Day Press Release: A Smokescreen

On May 29, 2025, British American Tobacco (BAT) Kenya issued a press release titled:
📄 “BAT Kenya Emphasizes Important Role of Smokeless Products in Tobacco Harm Reduction on World Vape Day and World No Tobacco Day”

A line in BAT’s press release states:

“A variety of Smokeless products—vapes, heated products, and nicotine pouches—are available and produce a fraction of the toxicants present in cigarette smoke.”

Let’s break that down:

• “A fraction of toxicants” is still toxic. There is no safe level of exposure to toxic chemicals.
• This is an admission of harm—yet BAT wants you to celebrate it.
• Real harm reduction means quitting nicotine altogether, not switching from one addictive product to another.

BAT’s silence on the specific health harms of vaping (such as lung injury, cardiovascular effects, and oral lesions) is no accident—it’s a strategic omission.

🚫 A Fake Day for Fake Solutions

Let’s not be misled. “World Vape Day”:

• Is not a legitimate world health calendar event
• Was not approved by any global health authority
• Serves as a tool of distraction and manipulation
• Is being used to sanitize the image of companies profiting from addiction

🗣️ Call to Action

As we mark World No Tobacco Day 2025, let us:

• Reject the false narrative of “World Vape Day.”
• Expose the tactics used by the tobacco and nicotine industry to manipulate public perception.
• Support policies that promote complete cessation—not substitution.
• Educate communities, especially youth, about the real risks of all nicotine products.

Let’s stay focused on the real goal: a tobacco-free and nicotine-free generation.

Written by Stowelink CPO, Oduor Kevin, as part of the Tobacco Industry Interference Digital Watch Initiative (TIIDWI) by Stowelink Foundation – Entry No. 7
#TIIDWI2025 #WNTD2025KE #WCTC2025