Single-use vapes containing nicotine, which were banned in the UK due to their appeal to children, are flooding popular Nigerian local markets and superstores. The Nigerian government has yet to announce plans to discuss or enact legislation protecting adult and juvenile vape users. 

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) warned Nigerians in 2019 about the risk of e-cigarettes but the products are in prominent shops, with the government and NAFDAC looking away.

The Colonist Report Africa visited three large and popular markets in Port Harcourt, Mile 3, Creek Road, and Mile 1 Markets, as well as superstores with branches across several parts of Nigeria such as Spar, Everyday Superstore, Timeless, Shoprite, and WelcomeU, and discovered these vapes are strategically placed on store shelves at varying prices. The majority of the vapes we saw contained 2 and 5 per cent nicotine, according to the product description

Our findings also revealed that most of these vapes in Nigeria are imported from Europe, the United States, China, Canada, and Dubai, among other places.  These vapes are sold for N1,000, N10,000, and N18,000, respectively. The products include Air disposable devices, EB design BC5000, Essential, Relx, Liteza Grand, Mazaya, Dandash, AL Fakhamah, Adalya, iyutak, and many others.

According to vape manufacturers, vapes would help smokers gradually quit smoking, but the World Health Organisation stated in an email to The Colonist Report that, while vaping is promoted as a means of quitting smoking, “e-cigarettes, as used in the real world, have not been proven to be effective for smoking cessation at the population level.”

Vape-related problems

While Nigeria has not officially announced any deaths or identified anyone affected by vaping, the United Kingdom has reported five deaths linked to vaping. 

Professor Best Ordinoha from the community medicine department of the University of Port Harcourt School Teaching Hospital (UPTH) has been treating patients who are suffering from the effects of vapes, including couples.  He told The Colonist Report Africa that nicotine affects the brain and the heart and that, despite its addictive effects on people, “vaping is dangerous and can cause long and short-term illnesses.”

According to Ordinoha, the short-term effects of vaping are mild and easily treatable, but they typically manifest within a few days. They include irritation of the throat and mouth caused by contact with the vapour, which can lead to cough, catarrh, and respiratory infections.

“But the long-term effect can cause cancer of the mouth and throat, which cannot be ruled out,” and it can take close to or more than a decade to fully manifest.”

He urged vapers to stop vaping due to the immediate and long-term health consequences. “Probably, going forward, the Nigerian government would look at regulating the sales, especially the products that target children and it is illegal to target children.

According to the World Health Organisation, tobacco-related illnesses kill around 30,000 people in Nigeria each year, and research has shown that 4.7 million Nigerian adults currently use a tobacco product, 3.1 million adults are current tobacco smokers, and approximately 25,000 children and adolescents between the ages of 10 and 14 smoke cigarettes every day in Nigeria.

Nigeria’s legal loopholes

Since 2015, when the former president of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, signed the National Tobacco Control Act, the law has not been effectively implemented.

Section 15 (1) of Nigeria’s National Tobacco Control Act, 2015 (NTCA) prohibits the sale of tobacco and tobacco products to and by a minor (below 18 years), however, findings by researchers and by The Colonist Report Africa show that under 18 years are being sold tobacco, especially in local areas in places like Port Harcourt, Lagos, including northern communities facing insecurity issues.

The law requires 70% parliamentary approval of regulations before it can be enforced.  The former health minister has used the tobacco law to promote the government’s tobacco control plans at global gatherings.

Akinbode Oluwafemi, executive director of Corporate Accountability and Public Partnership Africa (CAPPA), a government watchdog organisation that has been pressuring the government to implement the tobacco control law, stated that there is a need for the  Nigerian government to protect people and children from the dangers of vaping.

Oluwafemi told The Colonist Report Africa that the tobacco industry claims vapes are “harm reduction products,” but “Nigeria does not need harm reduction products; we need very strong tobacco laws.”  

For more than two decades, Oluwafemi has advocated for a tobacco-free nation to protect Africans from the harmful effects of tobacco products. He says the Nigerian National Tobacco Act has a loophole that needs to be closed. 

Oluwafemi stated, “The science for vapes is not clear.

“When the science is not clear, vapes should be avoided,” he said. “We have begun to educate people about cigarettes because the government cannot come out and ban them.”

Vape sales in Nigeria are increasing, and advertisements are becoming more prominent. Burna Boy, a Grammy Award-winning artiste from Nigeria, signed a five-year deal with vaping companies BrkFst and Aspire North America, LLC, a subsidiary of Inspire Technology Inc., to manufacture and distribute vaping products in Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, and Europe in December 2023.

Oluwafemi fears that Burna Boy’s five-year deal with vaping companies will result in aggressive marketing of cannabis vaping and e-cigarettes. Several Nigerians have criticised the deal since its announcement. Other Nigerians have criticised the Lagos state government for allowing the product’s advertisement.

Government look-away

Nigerians were cautioned by NAFDAC in 2019 to give up using e-cigarettes. Vapes are one type of electronic cigarette that contains nicotine. 

Prof. Moji Adeyeye, Director-General of NAFDAC, opined in a statement that the United States Food and Drug Administration has revealed the risks associated with the use of e-cigarettes and that health workers should investigate patients who are experiencing seizures.

“Ask patients about e-cigarette use (e.g. vaping), particularly when providing care following a seizure, and ask for the particulars of the brand, duration, and nature of the use.

“Healthcare professionals and patients are also encouraged to report adverse events or side effects related to the use of these products to the nearest NAFDAC office,’’ as she said, as quoted by the Tribune.

We sent an email to the NAFDAC requesting comments on their roles in protecting Nigerians and young people from vapes, but the agency never responded.

The Colonist Report Africa also sent an email to the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), whose roles include providing standards and quality assurance services for all products, services, and processes in Nigeria in line with international best practices to ensure continual improvement. We asked them about their roles and campaigns in protecting Nigerians from the effects of nicotine vapes. Until the time of publication, there was no response from SON.

In addition, we emailed the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to learn more about the commission’s role in reducing or eliminating the negative impact of vapes on consumers. We are yet to get a response from the FCCPC.

Young people and vapes

Vaping is popular among children in the United Kingdom, and the products are slowly making their way into African schools. The Colonist Report investigation revealed how underage children in the UK break into shops to obtain vapes, despite the government’s efforts to keep children away from vaping.

One 19-year-old university student in the UK, who preferred not to be identified, told The Colonist Report Africa that she began vaping in December 2023, after two months of smoking cigarrette. “When I started vaping, I liked it bu I am addicted to the vape,” she said.

 “I can feel that I am having problems breathing and when I am walking and I can’t walk too much,” she continued. “The main problem is that while I am tasting, I can’t drink water but would be looking for my vape.

Our source said she has started the process of quitting with the help of a friend. The Colonist Report interviewed her 25-year-old friend about how she helped her quit vaping. The friend said: “Once she tried to vape, I will immediately take the vape,” but she became anxious and asked for the vapes. “However, I never gave it to her; instead, I would tell her that the vape is bad.”

In Burkina Faso, children are being caught using vapes, while vapes are unknown to many parents of the children. 

Ms. Ouédraogo, a mother of three in Burkina Faso, was shocked to see the vape tube in her 14-year-old school bag. When she asked her son, he said it was a toy. “I had doubts so I approached other parents and one of them confirmed to me that it was about recharging an electronic cigarette. That’s how I knew my child was smoking.” 

“He didn’t smell like a cigarette,” she said. “I never saw him with it and his lips didn’t turn black. It’s often the signs that we are watching, but with this thing, I didn’t see anything coming.”

According to her, the son, who attends a private high school in the city of Ouagadougou gets the vape from the WhatsApp groups his classmates created. “They exchange tips and also go to shops where refills of cigarettes are on sale,” she said.

The 38-year-old mother, who is yet to recover from the shock of learning that her son vapes, assumed he was the only vaper at school and sought advice and counsel from a women’s group. “The testimonies they shared with me show me that the phenomenon is growing.”

Both Nigerian and Burkina Faso laws explicitly prohibit individuals below the age of 18 from consuming tobacco products.  Single-use vapes containing nicotine, which were banned in the UK due to their appeal to children, are flooding popular Nigerian local markets and supermarkets.