By Robert Mutasi 
Residents, traders and stakeholders in Uasin Gishu County will on Friday have an opportunity to shape proposed tough new laws regulating nicotine products, including electronic cigarettes, vapes and flavored nicotine pouches.
The National Assembly Departmental Committee on Health will hold a public participation forum in Eldoret on Friday, September 25, 2026, from 9:00am to 12:00pm at Uasin Gishu County Hall, as part of nationwide hearings on the Tobacco Control (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
The Bill, sponsored by Senator Catherine Mumma, seeks to amend the Tobacco Control Act, Cap 245A, to bring electronic nicotine delivery systems under strict statutory regulation.
The committee is conducting hearings in seven counties between September 24 and 26, beginning in Nairobi at the Mini Chamber, County Hall, Parliament Buildings, before moving to Uasin Gishu, Bungoma, Tharaka Nithi and Meru on Friday, and Laikipia and Kisumu on Saturday.
Among far-reaching proposals that will directly affect Eldoret town and other trading centres in Uasin Gishu is a total ban on online sale and hawking of nicotine products, a move targeting social media sellers and street vendors.
The Bill also proposes a 100-metre buffer zone between schools and any licensed nicotine distributor or retail outlet, plain packaging with prominent health warnings, and a complete ban on non-tobacco flavours which are popular among youth.
If enacted, manufacturers will be restricted to 10ml bottle sizes and a nicotine concentration limit of 20mg per millilitre. The law further seeks to ban single-use plastic vapes in favour of refillable devices and to restrict digital advertising, including influencer marketing on TikTok and Instagram.
National Assembly Clerk Samuel Njoroge has called on Uasin Gishu residents, including parents, teachers, health workers, traders, boda boda operators, students and civil society groups, to attend the forum to make oral representations or submit written memoranda.
The views collected in Eldoret and other counties will be considered before the committee tables its final report to the National Assembly for debate.