Tobacco in Montenegro: a public health emergency

Tobacco consumption is the leading cause of premature death. preventable in Montenegro, according to Mina Brajović, head of the World Health Organization (WHO) office in the country. She points out that more than 2,000 deaths are recorded there each year due to tobacco-related diseases, or nearly 30% of annual deaths. In 2022, approximately 32% of Montenegrin adults consumed tobacco, a figure higher than the European (25.3% of Montenegrin adults) and global (20.9% of Montenegrin adults) average.[1].

Regulations still poorly applied

Brajović believes that the implementation of the obligations under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which Montenegro ratified on 23 October 2006, remains insufficient. Measures such as banning smoking in enclosed public spaces, workplaces, and on public transport are still not effectively implemented. Furthermore, health services to support smoking cessation or monitor consumption remain limited.

According to the WHO, an effective strategy should include a total ban on smoking in public places, the elimination of all forms of advertising, promotion and sponsorship, the imposition of plain and standardized packaging, increased support for smoking cessation and disincentive taxation through specific taxes.

The recent increase in excise taxes on tobacco products is considered a step in the right direction. The WHO encourages authorities to continue this policy, which has been shown to be effective in reducing consumption in the first few months.

Tobacco has both a health and economic cost, the dignitary recalls.

" Smoking tobacco products, including hookahs, contain more than 7,000 chemicals, at least 250 of which are known to be toxic or carcinogenic. Chewing tobacco also causes serious, sometimes fatal, health problems. The tobacco industry doesn't produce everyday consumer goods; it sells products designed to create and maintain addiction, killing up to half of users who fail to quit. These products contain nicotine, an addictive substance, as well as numerous toxic chemicals that affect nearly every organ in the human body and have a lifelong negative impact on health. On average, long-term smokers lose at least 10 years of their life. ", underlines Ms. Brajović.

It warns that tobacco use in 2021 was responsible for 15.4 % of all deaths in men and 4.7 % in women in the WHO European Region.

The economic consequences are also significant: in 2020, tobacco-related losses were estimated at €307 million, or 7.3 billion of the country's annual GDP. These losses far exceed the revenue generated by tobacco taxes.

An industry that targets younger generations

The WHO also highlights the methods of the tobacco and nicotine industry, dubbed the "industry of death," which uses aggressive marketing tactics. Products are often presented in attractive packaging, with flavors designed to appeal to young people. These flavors are identified as a major factor in initiation and addiction, making quitting more difficult.

Brajović insists that the industry continues to send mixed messages, claiming that certain products, such as nicotine pouches, are not harmful, or that higher taxes would have negative consequences for jobs or the economy, claims contradicted by solid scientific data.

She concludes by calling on the Montenegrin authorities to adopt comprehensive new legislation without delay, accompanied by effective monitoring and enforcement mechanisms, in order to protect public health, particularly that of the younger generations.

Montenegro has already been proactive in this matter. by organizing, in March 2025, several high-level technical and political meetings, bringing together decision-makers, experts, NGOs and representatives of international organizations, in order to strengthen cooperation in the Western Balkans, accelerate the ratification of the WHO Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products and combat tobacco industry interference.

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[1]Komatina Ana, Smoking claims 2,000 lives annually: WHO office head on control and manipulation of the “death industry”, Vijesti, published on August 3, 2025, accessed on August 4, 2025

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