The South African Parliament has advanced the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill to clause-by-clause deliberations. This legislative step, approved by the Portfolio Committee on Health, brings the country closer to enforcing a ban on public vaping and smoking.
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South African Members of Parliament have entered detailed clause-by-clause deliberations on the proposed Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill. The Health Portfolio Committee is scrutinizing the bill’s definitions, with lawmakers demanding changes to address illicit trade, scientific evidence, and harm reduction.
Read moreThe Portfolio Committee on Health has officially adopted a motion of desirability on the long-delayed Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill. This procedural step moves the legislation—first proposed in 2018—into crucial clause-by-clause deliberations, marking a pivotal moment for South Africa’s public health policy.
Read moreSouth Africa’s Parliament has advanced the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill, signaling a major step toward outlawing indoor smoking and vaping nationwide. Following a committee agreement on June 24, 2026, the legislative push aims to fiercely protect youth while confronting the country’s rampant illicit tobacco trade.
Read moreA new University of Cape Town (UCT) study reveals that approximately 60% of cigarettes sold in South Africa are illicit, driven by weak regulatory enforcement and consumer habits formed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read moreSouth Africa’s Department of Health is advancing revisions to the long-debated Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill following late 2025 public consultations. The legislation aims to close regulatory gaps by introducing mandatory plain packaging, expanding enforcement powers to tackle the illicit trade, and strictly regulating e-cigarettes. Despite industry pushback, the government firmly rejects vaping as a harm-reduction tool, prioritizing total nicotine cessation to ease the burden on the national healthcare system.
Read morestandardized or “plain” packaging is a central component of the proposed Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill currently under debate in South Africa. While aimed at reducing tobacco appeal, especially among youth, the measure faces significant opposition due to concerns about intellectual property rights and the potential to exacerbate the country’s already booming illicit tobacco trade.
Key Takeaways:
- New Bill:Â The legislation targets both traditional tobacco and e-cigarettes (vapes).
- Plain Packaging:Â Proposed removal of branding to reduce product appeal.
- Illicit Trade Risk:Â SARS warns standardized packs could make spotting illegal goods harder.
- Global Trend:Â Over 40 countries have moved towards plain packaging since 2012.
South Africa, once a global darling of public health for its decisive anti-tobacco actions in the 1990s, now finds itself in a state of stagnation. While early bans on advertising successfully cut smoking rates from 32% to 24% within a decade, adult smoking prevalence has since plateaued at around 20%.
Read moreThe Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has presented its submission to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Health, throwing its full support behind the long-overdue Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill. The trade union federation hails the bill as a critical tool to reduce the devastating toll of smoking-related diseases and deaths in South Africa, while also arguing that it is essential to safeguard the legal tobacco industry and its value chain from the “explosion” of the illicit tobacco trade.
Read moreMultinational cigarette manufacturer British American Tobacco (BAT) has strongly criticized South Africa’s proposed Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill, arguing it is “critically flawed” and will only harm the compliant market while failing to address the country’s rampant illicit trade.
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