E‑Cigarettes Flood Mutare Schools, Children Buying Them Like Sweets

Schoolchildren in Mutare are openly buying disposable e‑cigarettes for as little as US$5, with shops selling the brightly packaged, candy‑flavoured devices without age checks.

The surge has recently turned classrooms into nicotine zones and alarmed health experts.

City shops have lined shelves with e‑cigarettes that resemble toys or flash drives, offering between 800 and 10,000 puffs.

The flavours — including strawberry ice, watermelon blast and cola rush are crafted to entice young buyers and are easy to conceal in pockets or pencil cases.

One shop attendant admitted: “I do not know much about vapes. I just know that we have the US$5 ones that have 800 puffs, the US$10 and US$12 ones that have more puffs, and the puffs get to even 10 000. They are from Canada.”

Multiple outlets were prepared to sell e‑cigarettes to anyone, including minors, with products displayed in plain sight.

Many brands mirror those phased out in the United Kingdom by mid‑2025, such as Elf Bar and Lost Mary, due to public‑health and environmental concerns.

In Zimbabwe, Government introduced an excise duty of US$0.50 per millilitre of e‑liquid and published ZWS 1121:2024 standards for vaping products, but weak enforcement leaves sales to children largely unchallenged.

The Manica Post observed groups of high school students hovering at vape counters, and teachers report that normalising nicotine use is eroding concentration and encouraging indiscipline.

The combination of easy availability, discreet designs and youth‑oriented flavours has accelerated uptake among teenagers.

Educators warn that habitual use is already undermining learning environments.

Medical professionals caution that, in an unregulated market, users cannot reliably know the contents or concentrations in the devices they inhale.

Dr Tendai Zuze said: “E‑cigarettes and vapes are definitely an emerging public health concern especially in our situation where products are unregulated, and exact contents and concentrations cannot always be ascertained.”

He added: “They can cause a wide spectrum of health issues from minor issues like cough, throat irritation, hoarse voice and shortness of breath to serious problems like high blood pressure, heart and lung damage and heavy metal poisoning to everyone who uses them regardless of age.”

He further warned: “More than anything, we are worried about known and unknown long term effects including cancers and chronic lung diseases that could be caused by these vapes.”

Local psychologists stress the addiction risk for adolescents whose brains and lungs are still developing.

Ms Sadia Khan of the Manicaland Mental Health Hospital and Rehab Centre said:

“Vaping is extremely dangerous, especially for young people whose lungs and brains are still developing. It can interfere with breathing and cognition and very quickly becomes a repetitive, addictive behaviour.”

She added: “The young do not realise that most vapes actually contain nicotine, sometimes in higher concentrations than cigarettes.

“The addiction can take hold fast, and the withdrawal effects can be severe.”

She also highlighted the dangers of illegal imports:

“Many of the vapes on sale here are not FDA‑approved. They may contain heavy metals, toxic chemicals, or even traces of illicit substances. We simply do not know the full health impact yet, especially with long‑term use.”

While tobacco and alcohol sales are restricted to adults over 18, Zimbabwe has no specific law governing e‑cigarettes.

Without clear national policies, mandated health warnings or retail oversight, children remain exposed to addictive products at formative ages.

Experts warn that unless urgent action is taken, youth nicotine dependence could harden, with lasting consequences for health, education and society.