WHO urged to rethink tobacco control strategy after 'failure' to cut smoking rates

Global harm reduction experts are calling on the World Health Organization (WHO) to reconsider its tobacco control policy, citing its failure to significantly reduce smoking rates and tobacco-related deaths worldwide.

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Panelists at the 2025 Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN) in Poland encouraged the WHO and governments globally to adopt harm reduction and human-centered policies. They said this approach would more effectively help over a billion smokers quit or switch to less harmful alternatives that include heated tobacco, nicotine pouches and e-cigarettes.

A panel titled "Reflections on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control at 20" brought together prominent voices in public health, oncology and consumer advocacy to assess two decades of global tobacco control efforts.

GFN panelists underscored the need to reframe tobacco control around science, equity and human rights, advocating for a new policy era that embraces harm reduction, supports consumer choice and respects the experiences of those most affected. They said it is time to move beyond prohibitionist policies towards pragmatic, evidence-based approaches prioritizing harm reduction, innovation and individual dignity.