Empowering consumers through education, not censorship

Last year, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) accounted for 61.7 percent of all deaths in Kenya, up from 52.4 percent in 2023. Kenya’s health burden has grown significantly.

This makes universal healthcare costlier than it was two years ago, with studies showing that NCDs are increasingly affecting younger age groups.

Kenya’s health budget has steadily increased. In the 2024/25 fiscal year, the national government plans to spend approximately Sh121.97 billion on health services, up from Sh107.52 billion in 2023/24, when the allocation represented about 11 percent of the national budget.

However, other sectors, such as education, defence and infrastructure, receive larger shares while a significant portion of the budget is devoted to debt servicing.

The typical government response to such data is often alarmist. It tends to focus on the high costs of treating tobacco-related illnesses and the strain they place on an already limited health budget.

But why crawl when we can fly? Rather than reacting only to disease, we can empower tobacco consumers through education, prevention and informed choices, enabling them to reduce harm before illness sets in.

This is where the concepts of regulatory divergence and regulatory lag (or conflict) come in.

Regulatory divergence happens when the industry’s product innovation outpaces or conflicts with government-approved public health strategies.

On the other hand, regulatory conflict occurs when government regulations or official guidelines fall behind rapid product innovation, leading to gaps in enforcement or public guidance.

The problem with the Kenyan government's approach is that it solely supports Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), which is often expensive.

Meanwhile, the tobacco industry offers commercial alternatives that can yield the same public health benefits more quickly, alleviating the health burden.

Consumers tend to prefer commercially marketed alternatives over medically approved options such as NRT. These alternative products are usually more accessible, appealing and familiar.

Often driven more by emotion than reason – a fact the tobacco industry has understood far better than any health ministry – most consumers also prefer to feel responsible for their choices rather than be told what to do.

However, public health strategies that engage industry through regulated partnerships, product standards or responsible marketing, often achieve better outcomes than purely adversarial approaches. The collaboration between industry and the regulator can align commercial innovation with public health goals, ensuring consumers have access to safer alternatives while advancing public health objectives.

Also, the industry often has the resources, budgets and know-how to reach consumers effectively, through marketing campaigns, promotions and product education. Leveraging these channels, under strict regulation, can complement public health efforts, ensuring accurate information reaches users while promoting safer alternatives.

Open, transparent communication, grounded in science and tailored to local realities, tends to be far more effective in guiding behaviour than prohibition or heavy-handed messaging. But censorship only makes consumers more stubborn. Unfortunately, governments influenced by the World Health Organisation (WHO) often perceive the tobacco industry as an adversary rather than a potential partner.

A nation is only as healthy as the priority it gives to its people’s well-being; as such, Kenya needs to invest in alternative ways to tackle the disease burden if it is to sustain its Universal Health Coverage plans and address the growing burden of disease.

The tobacco industry can be a partner in consumer education, not in promoting use, but in providing accurate information about product risks and safer alternatives.

It is time to reevaluate the collaboration between government and industry in this sector to see if a cordial note can be struck in empowering consumers to choose safer alternatives.