South African vaping industry could generate 10,000 jobs

The e-cigarette is currently experiencing a boom in the South African market. It has created over 4,000 jobs in wholesale and retail. For Fidel Hadebe, spokesperson for Vaping Products Association of South Africa (VPASA), this is only the beginning. In ten years, the sector could create as many as 10,000 jobs.

Bold predictions were announced during the Vaping 2018 conference, which just concluded in Johannesburg. The VPASA is also hoping to sound the alarm about a new bill that could damage the vaping industry by enforcing strict regulations.

The government wants to implement a common legislative framework for e-cigarettes and tobacco products. Businesses that offer these products will no longer be able to use visible signage, and online sales will be prohibited.

A growing market

For the VPASA, it doesn’t make sense to enforce the same regulations for tobacco and e-cigarettes. Numerous studies have shown that vaping is 95% less harmful than tobacco. It should thus benefit from more lenient regulations, seeing as how vaping does not have the same negative impact on health.

Canback Consulting estimates that the South African vaping market is rising in accordance with the global trend. For the time being, however, it is still in the early stages of development, and for the market to continue to rise, restrictive measures must not hamper the market.

According to Zodwa Velleman, president of the South African Association of Vaping Products, the sector must be protected. In terms of both job creation and public health benefits, the e-cigarette is an asset. Mr. Velleman hopes that the government will review the new regulations and consider just how much e-cigarettes can help smokers quit.