Tobacco retail characteristics across urban and rural districts in Lao PDR: an observational study, 2024

Exposure to tobacco advertising and promotion is linked to smoking initiation among youth. Very little is known about the tobacco retail environment in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR). This study examines the characteristics of tobacco retailer outlets (TROs) and tobacco advertising and promotion in three districts of the Lao PDR capital city Vientiane, two urban (Sissatanak and Chanthabuly) and one rural districts (Naxaithong).

In each district, we defined a catchment area to identify TROs around schools (500 meters in urban and 1,000 meters in rural districts). We conducted the audit between January 19 and February 18, 2024. Observers assessed and recorded TRO types, cigarette sales, and tobacco advertisements and promotions.

A total of 233 TROs were audited around schools: 113 in Sissatanak, 90 in Chanthabuly, and 30 in Naxaithong. TRO types included convenience stores (40.3%), supermarkets (27.9%), roadside kiosks (17.2%), and restaurants (6.0%). TROs in the urban districts, Sissatanak (38.6%) and Chanthabuly (48.5%) were more likely to display age verification signs compared to the Naxaithong (12.8%) (p value<0.05). Also, Naxaithong had more outside advertisements (90.0%) compared to both urban districts (54.7%) (p value <0.001). Tobacco advertisements were more common in Naxaithong (90.0%) than in Chanthabuly (51.3%, p value<0.01) or Sissatanak (58.0%, p value<0.01). Supermarkets had the highest proportion of age verification signs (29.2%) compared to all the other TRO types (p value<0.01).

Our study provides cross-sectional evidence on tobacco retail outlet characteristics around schools in urban and rural districts of Vientiane, Lao PDR. We observed variation in retail characteristics, including a higher prevalence of outdoor tobacco advertisements and in-store branding materials in rural districts compared with urban districts.

Our study provides cross-sectional evidence on the tobacco retail environment in Vientiane, Lao PDR. Based on the observations and primary data collected in January-February 2024, our study found continued retail-level promotional practices, limited age-verification signage, availability of low-priced cigarettes, and variability in compliance with tobacco control regulations across retail outlet types. While these findings are descriptive in nature, they suggest that strengthened monitoring and enforcement of existing regulations may support more effective implementation of tobacco control policies in Lao PDR.