MANILA, Philippines — Health advocates from around the world pressed the World Health Organization (WHO) to embrace harm reduction as a central pillar of global tobacco control, urging delegates to the upcoming Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) talks in November to recognize the role of safer alternatives to cigarettes.

At a September 3 forum in Makati, experts and consumer groups signed a joint statement calling on the WHO to “fully integrate harm reduction into tobacco control,” arguing that the agency’s current approach ignores scientific evidence and consumer realities.

“The evidence is clear: combustion kills, not nicotine. Safer alternatives exist and are effective. This is the time to stand with science and evidence,” the declaration read.

Fred Roeder, health economist and president of the Consumer Choice Center, noted that countries experimenting with harm reduction have seen promising results but Southeast Asia remains resistant.

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