With the government yet to make a decision on how to regulate e-cigarettes, vaping groups are doing what they can to persuade the government to allow separate regulation.

Consumer advocacy group Vaping Saved My Life (VSML) has launched a campaign to help educate consumers about the benefits of e-cigarettes and address the myths associated with them.

They also created an online petition to support the campaign, calling for vaping products to be regulated separately from traditional tobacco products in South Africa.

So far, the campaign has garnered about 4,500 signatures since it launched in mid-February.

However, consumer advocacy groups hope to gain more support from South Africans in the coming months.

VSML founder Kurt Yeo said: "We've got about 4,500 signatures, which must be said is well below our target.

"However, this poor result shows how typical South Africans feel about being heard by our government. This was evident in the recent municipal elections, which saw record low voter turnout."

“Furthermore, a 2020 petition hosted on Change.org with over 650,000 signatures in support of lifting the now infamous ban on tobacco sales failed to convince the restrictions to be lifted is still fresh in the memory of this section of society, and further It reinforces the belief that the government simply doesn't care."

"Unfortunately, the result of the prolonged ban has been an unprecedented increase in the illicit cigarette trade, creating a lose-lose situation."

“VSML continues to believe that petitions and public engagement are critical to drafting appropriate regulations and policies, and will continue to engage through these and other means. The voices of vaping consumers, primarily ex-smokers, need to be heard. "

As part of the campaign, the advocacy group is also working with a small number of smokers who choose to explore a different lifestyle on social media and participating in a 90-day quit smoking and vaping challenge.

Participants have been documenting their real-life experiences on Facebook and Twitter, while encouraging the vaping community to sign a petition calling for vaping products to be regulated separately from tobacco products.

The advocacy group decided to launch the campaign to address several issues surrounding vaping, Yeo said.

“The campaign is trying to address several issues: highlighting the fact that, although not completely risk-free, vaping is significantly less harmful than smoking. This is important because it is known that most long-term smokers repeatedly quit smoking failed and accepted the fate of serious illness and/or premature death.”

"E-cigarettes could provide these users with a less harmful alternative and offer them a chance to escape smoking-related diseases."

The campaign also called on the government to exclude e-cigarettes/vaping from the proposed Tobacco Product Control and Electronic Delivery Systems Act 2018.

"E-cigarettes are not tobacco, it's much lower risk, so it should be viewed differently," Yeo said.

“We are not calling for the complete repeal of vaping/vaping regulations. Instead, we welcome regulations that need to be based on the latest credible scientific evidence.”

“South Africa has a proud history of harm reduction. VSML believes that if we are to achieve NCD/public health goals, it needs to be extended to tobacco.”

He said he also hopes the campaign will help dispel negative sentiment about vaping.

“Negative sentiment and prejudice have long dominated our news wave on the subject of vaping with little balance, with hundreds of thousands of ex-smokers in South Africa (millions worldwide) managing to switch or even drop out of the discussion altogether.”

"VSML believes that these success stories need to be heard and should be considered important when drafting policy."

Asanda Gcoyi, chief executive of the Vapor Products Association of South Africa (VPASA), believes it would be disastrous if vaping products were not regulated separately from tobacco products.

"Unfortunately, this will be a tragic outcome for smokers," Gcoyi said.

"It basically means that smokers who want to explore alternatives are not getting the right information to make an informed choice between different nicotine products."

“It will also confirm that combustible tobacco is the only viable option for smokers to obtain nicotine. It is important to stress that neither the vaping industry nor smokers are demanding discretion over vaping products. However, we do call for regulation, Allow the vaping industry to differentiate itself from combustible tobacco while discouraging non-smokers from vaping because these products are intended for current nicotine users.”

"Unfortunately, insisting on protecting only non-smokers will come at the expense of smokers, who desperately need potentially less harmful alternatives to tobacco."

Gcoyi also confirmed that VPASA has been in communication with the government about the regulation of e-cigarettes, but the cooperation has been disappointing.

“We have been engaging with the government, the last official engagement was with the Ministry of Health in May 2021. This is the second engagement since the proposed bill was first published in 2017. However, we are disappointed to learn that our views Not taken into account, the Socio-Economic Impact Assessment report is unchanged from 2017.”

"Obviously this is (and still is) an issue for us as a lot has changed since the first release of the draft bill and where we are now. Unfortunately, the Ministry of Health has not responded to information updates, the status of the draft bill. or anything related to the proposed bill.”

While hoping for a separate regulation of e-cigarettes in South Africa, Gcoyi admits she is concerned about the government's view of e-cigarettes.

"We believe that a proper assessment of the scientific evidence on e-cigarettes will force governments and the anti-tobacco movement to stop and think about the opportunities e-cigarettes offer to combat the harms posed by smoking."

"However, the government response to date has been very anti-vaping. Most of this confrontation appears to be based on deliberate misrepresentation of the harms of vaping and selective reading of the scientific literature."

“As far as we know, the government’s position on this point is driven by an authoritarian view that does not seem to favor the distinction between these two distinct nicotine products. In a sense, the government There appears to be no support for tobacco harm reduction, although even the World Health Organization includes harm reduction in its definition of tobacco control."

All they want, Gcoyi said, is for South Africa to get legislation that would allow consumers to choose potentially less harmful alternatives to cigarettes.

“Insisting on grouping tobacco and electronic vaping products (EVPs) into one category gives the impression that they are equally harmful to one’s health. However, as Public Health England, Royal College of Physicians, American Academy of Sciences, Cancer Research UK etc. Studies by renowned international organizations have shown that e-cigarettes are 95% less harmful than smoking.”

Confusing the two could lead people to think they are the same when they are not, he said.

"This perception may deter many smokers who do not want to quit from considering e-cigarettes as an alternative source of nicotine, thereby continuing their harmful addiction to combustible tobacco. E-cigarettes do not contain tobacco."

Gcoyi said VPASA is doing what it can to raise awareness about e-cigarettes.

“We’ve been engaging with different stakeholders to educate them and raise awareness about vaping. We recognize that people are not well informed about vaping, so our goal is to empower those who ultimately determine how we are regulated stakeholders.”

"We also regularly send stakeholders the latest research to ensure they are also aware of the latest scientific developments in the field."

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