Funding gaps cripple tobacco awareness efforts, warns the youth

The lack of financial support remains one of the biggest barriers for South African youth working to curb tobacco use.

At COP11, the Eleventh Session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), held in Geneva on Tuesday, young delegates urged governments to back youth-led campaigns with real funding, not just statements of support.

A group of youth activists from various NGOs, among the 1,400 delegates attending COP11, said government underfunding undermines efforts to prevent a new generation from becoming hooked on nicotine.

Vuyolwethu Baleni from the African Medical and Research Foundation’s Youth in Action project described the frustration they face.

“Funding is a problem. Another issue we encounter is that whenever we engage the government, we are not getting any response, which shows there is no sense of urgency when it comes to tobacco control challenges,” she said.

Thato Mmako from the SA Tobacco-Free Youth Forum agreed that South Africa has demonstrated political will over the years, having passed its first tobacco control law in 1993 and becoming a signatory to the WHO FCTC in 2005, but said that political commitment alone cannot deliver change.

“We have seen political will from our health minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, and some officials within tobacco control. Unfortunately, there is no funding, or it’s not adequate, for tobacco control,” Mmako said.

He added that the resource gap forces civil society to shoulder responsibilities that should be the state’s.

“Our voice is strong, but it is civil society that is making it stronger. So this is the people’s revolution instead of a government-supported revolution,” he said.

Youth activists insist that while legislation is important, it must be matched by proper investment, otherwise progress will continue to stall.

Acting head of the WHO FCTC Secretariat Andrew Black urged governments to prioritise sustainable financing.

“The very best way that the government can raise these resources is to increase tobacco taxation rates. That’s how governments can create new streams of revenue and generate resources to invest in this problem,” he said.

This lack of funding is reflected in global trends. According to the 2025 Global Progress Report on Implementation of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, just over half of reporting parties have a national tobacco control plan or strategy in place, but only one in three say those plans are fully funded.

The report further notes that while two-thirds of parties have established national multisectoral coordinating mechanisms for tobacco control, less than half have dedicated financing for these mechanisms, leaving gaps in enforcement, prevention and public education.

We don’t want to be targets of the tobacco industry. We are here to prevent manipulation and marketing targeted at young people. We should not only sit at these tables, we should design the tables. Policymakers should include us more.

—  Julia Nowicka, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids

The activists, representing various youth-led and civil society organisations, said on Tuesday that new nicotine products such as vapes and nicotine pouches are being pushed into the youth market through slick digital campaigns, competitions and misleading safety claims, all while government funding for prevention and enforcement remains inadequate.

Youth representatives from outside South Africa echoed these concerns.

Julia Nowicka, a young ambassador for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said young people should not be sidelined in global tobacco control discussions.

“We don’t want to be targets of the tobacco industry. We are here to prevent manipulation and marketing targeted at young people. We should not only sit at these tables, we should design the tables. Policymakers should include us more,” she said.

Strategies leading to youth addiction

Baleni said misinformation is fuelling a surge in young users.

“We have young parents who buy their kids these vapes because they think it’s just flavoured and harmless. There needs to be meaningful engagement with young people about these emerging products,” she said.

Mmako said the industry was deliberately recruiting youth consumers.

“The tobacco industry is running competitions and branding campaigns to push these products. They claim they are safe, but when challenged professionally, they shift to calling them ‘alternatives’,” he said.

Mmako added that financial insecurity among young people makes them more vulnerable to addiction.

“Most youth rely on the R350 grant, and when that finishes, they switch to cheaper cigarettes to soothe the craving. The industry knows this: addiction becomes a cycle created through aggressive marketing,” he said.

Youth representatives from outside South Africa echoed these concerns.

Nowicka said young people should not be sidelined in global tobacco control discussions.

“We don’t want to be targets of the tobacco industry. We are here to prevent manipulation and marketing targeted at young people. We should not only sit at these tables, we should design the tables. Policymakers should include us more,” she said.

Government initiative

Advocate Kgorohlo Moabelo, director of legal services at the department of health, said South Africa has made significant progress in protecting current and future generations from the harmful health, social, environmental and economic consequences of tobacco use.

“Following our ratification of the Convention, South Africa has strengthened its regulatory framework. The incremental approach to implementing population-level measures demonstrates the government’s political commitment, while acknowledging the country’s social, political and administrative realities,” he said.

Moabelo added that parliament is currently processing the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill of 2022, which introduces five major policy areas, including:

• 100% smoke-free public areas;
• a ban on the sale of tobacco products through vending machines;
• plain packaging for tobacco products;
• regulation of new-generation products such as e-cigarettes and vapes; and
• stricter controls on advertising and marketing.

He emphasised that the bill aims to address both traditional tobacco use and the rapid rise of novel nicotine products targeting young people.

Moabelo also acknowledged the role of civil society in pushing the country forward on tobacco control.

“We would like to acknowledge the exceptional contribution of South Africa’s civil society in advancing tobacco control across our country,” he said.