Promoting Smoke-free Environments in the ASEAN Region

9th Smoke-free Meeting in Hue City, Vietnam

The 9th Asia Pacific Smoke-free Meeting, themed Destination Smoke-free: Transforming Tourism Across Asia Pacific, was held in Hue City, Vietnam on 28–29 August, gathering 160 delegates from nine countries. Beyond sharing tools such as the Smoke-free Policy Implementation and Enforcement Guide and the briefer on the Global Alliance for Smoke-free Tourism (GAST), the meeting successfully mobilized cities, municipalities, and provinces to actively integrate smoke-free initiatives into their tourism development strategies. Delegates identified and committed to promoting smoke-free tourist destinations within their jurisdictions and expressed interest in enrolling these sites under GAST to strengthen visibility, networking, and sustained collaboration across the region. The meeting also reinforced the role of local governments and tourism authorities as key partners in advancing smoke-free tourism as part of their broader health and sustainability agendas.