Programme at a glance

A scene-setting overview of where the region stands on THR – progress made, challenges ahead and the urgency of the moment. Drawing on the latest policy developments, this keynote will set the tone for the day by establishing a shared understanding of the current landscape across APMEA, highlighting where evidence-based regulation is gaining ground and where prohibitionist approaches continue to drive harm – framing the collective challenge facing researchers, clinicians, policymakers, and consumer advocates in the room.

Speaker

Professor Tikki Pangestu

1–2 short presentations (10 mins each) showcasing recent research from across the region, followed by a panel discussion focused on translating evidence into practical policy and advocacy action – with a clear “so what” message for the audience. This session will spotlight cutting-edge scientific, clinical and epidemiological findings relevant to the Asia-Pacific context, with a deliberate emphasis on how this evidence can and should inform regulatory frameworks – equipping policymakers, regulators, and advocates with the arguments and data they need to advance proportionate, evidence-based policy in their own jurisdictions.

Moderator

Professor Marewa Glover

Speaker

Professor Dr. Rohan Savio Sequeira

Panelist

Professor Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh

A discussion-based session examining real-world data and case studies on the outcomes of THR approaches across the region, with a focus on what works, what doesn't and what policymakers and advocates can take away. Moving beyond clinical trial data, this session will draw on population-level outcomes from markets where reduced-risk products have been government-endorsed and widely available (e.g., Japan), where the introduction of HTPs has been associated with declines in cigarette sales, and New Zealand, where a regulatory framework has supported a reduction in smoking prevalence. These and other regional examples will demonstrate the tangible public health impact of harm reduction in practice, building an evidence-grounded case for consumer advocates, HCPs, and regulators to take back to their own local and national contexts.

Moderator

Dr Alex Wodak

Panelists

Dr Hiroya KumamaruProfessor Marewa GloverSairah Salim-SartoniEhsan Latif

A panel discussion exploring the extent to which consumer voices are meaningfully represented in FCTC processes and making the case for why their inclusion is essential to effective and equitable tobacco policy. Featuring consumer advocates and civil society representatives, this session will examine the structural barriers that prevent people who smoke and those who have switched to safer alternatives from participating in the policy processes that directly affect them and explore practical mechanisms for ensuring their perspectives are heard at national, regional and international levels, including within WHO FCTC COP proceedings.

Moderator

Nancy Loucas

Panelists

Asa SaliguptaClarisse Virgino AdriaticoJagannath (Jaggi) Sarangapani

A guest lecture on law enforcement and the criminalisation cascade, followed by a panel discussion bringing together policymakers and law enforcement specialists to examine how prohibition-led policy fuels illicit markets and what a more proportionate framework could look like across the region. This session will address one of the most significant yet underexplored consequences of restrictive tobacco regulation – the expansion of black markets, organised crime and the downstream burden on law enforcement – making the case that effective tobacco control and public safety are best served by regulation, not prohibition.

Moderator

Heneage Mitchell

Panelists

Dr Alex Wodak📍Local PH representative (TBA)Michael Ellis

A discussion-based session exploring how all stakeholders across the THR ecosystem can work together more effectively to advance THR across the region. Bringing together voices from across the target audience groups – researchers, clinicians, consumer advocates, policymakers, and law enforcement – this session will examine how siloed approaches have limited progress and explore models for cross-sector collaboration that can accelerate the adoption of evidence-based THR policy; the conversation will feed directly into the commitments and next steps articulated in the Asia Declaration.

Moderator

Professor Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh

Panelists

Ehsan LatifProfessor Tikki Pangestu📍Local PH representative (TBA)

A combined closing session in which the Asia Declaration is formally presented, followed by a forward-looking discussion on how it can be used as a practical advocacy tool, and what concrete actions the group will take ahead of COP12. This session will bring the day's discussions to a decisive close, translating the collective scientific, clinical, and advocacy insights from across the programme into a unified regional statement that participants can carry back to their local and national contexts, use in peer-to-peer advocacy, and submit to WHO regional offices as a formal expression of the region's evidence-based position on tobacco harm reduction.

Moderator

Michelle A. Desierto

Speakers

Professor Tikki PangestuNancy Loucas

Press conference and media briefings to summarise outcomes and public messaging from the forum.