BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — Baguio City has earned the Gold Award at the 2026 ASEAN Smoke-Free Awards, putting the Philippines’ summer capital at the forefront of tobacco-control efforts in Southeast Asia.
The recognition was presented on September 10 during the opening of the 17th ASEAN Health Ministers Meeting in Malaysia, where Baguio was honored for its implementation and enforcement of smoke-free policies designed to protect residents and visitors from tobacco smoke.
The award is particularly significant because the ASEAN Smoke-Free Awards recognize local and sub-national governments, rather than national tobacco-control programs. The initiative is led by the Government of Lao PDR through ASEAN Health Cluster 1, together with the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) and the ASEAN Secretariat.
Baguio takes the top spot
Baguio emerged as this year’s Gold Award recipient, while George Town in Penang, Malaysia, received Silver.
Five other local governments received Bronze Awards: Depok City in Indonesia, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, Thanbyuzayat Township in Myanmar, Pasig City in the Philippines, and Maha Sarakham in Thailand.
Singapore, meanwhile, received special recognition for its consistent smoke-free enforcement.
For the Philippines, the result is especially notable because Baguio becomes the second Philippine city to win the ASEAN Smoke-Free Awards’ highest honor. Iloilo City received the inaugural Gold Award in 2024.
Years of enforcement behind the award
Baguio’s Gold recognition did not happen overnight.
The city has been implementing its Smoke-Free Baguio Ordinance, Ordinance No. 34, Series of 2017, with enforcement covering public spaces and extending to both conventional tobacco products and electronic cigarettes.
According to the Philippine Information Agency, Baguio’s smoke-free campaign has been in place since 2018. From 2018 through 2025, the city conducted more than 300 education and advocacy activities, inspected over 5,000 establishments, and issued more than 2,000 citation tickets.
The results have also been reflected in smoking rates.
The city’s health authorities reported that adult smoking prevalence fell dramatically, from 35.3 percent in 2018 to 8.9 percent in 2025, according to PIA’s report on Baguio’s World Health Organization recognition.
An earlier Inquirer report also documented the continuing decline in smoking in the city, citing a reduction in adult smoking from 31.9 percent in 2014 to 8.9 percent in 2022. Among young residents, the 2023 Baguio Youth Tobacco Survey recorded a smoking rate of 5.29 percent, down from 12.3 percent in 2019 and 20.72 percent in 2016.
Enforcement remains the key
Baguio has continued to strengthen enforcement instead of relying solely on public information campaigns.
PNA reported in February that the city was expanding its network of accredited smoke-free enforcers to cover all 128 barangays, while continuing random inspections and nighttime enforcement operations. More than 1,000 individuals and establishments were apprehended in 2025 for violations, according to the city health officer cited by PNA.
The ordinance prohibits smoking and vaping in public places, while also regulating cigarette sales, including sales to minors and sales near sensitive locations such as schools, churches and government offices.
But Baguio officials acknowledge that the fight is changing.
While conventional cigarette use has declined, vaping has emerged as a major challenge, particularly among young people. The city has been pushing for stronger rules on the marketing and online distribution of vape products.
Baguio’s recognition goes beyond ASEAN
The ASEAN Gold Award is also the latest in a series of international recognitions for Baguio’s tobacco-control program.
In June 2026, the World Health Organization gave Baguio a 2026 World No Tobacco Day Award, citing its sustained work against tobacco and nicotine products. PIA reported that the city had also previously received international recognition for its public-health initiatives.
WHO Western Pacific Regional Director Dr. Saia Ma’u Piukala also visited Baguio in May and praised the city’s approach to tobacco control, clean-air initiatives and community participation, describing its efforts as a potential model for other governments in the Western Pacific.
A model for other ASEAN cities?
SEATCA Executive Director Dr. Ulysses Dorotheo said the latest awardees demonstrate that strictly enforced smoke-free policies can work at the local level.
The ASEAN initiative traces its roots to the “Towards a Smoke-Free ASEAN” campaign launched in 2012 and seeks to encourage local governments to turn regional health commitments into concrete protections for their communities.
For Baguio, the Gold Award represents more than a regional trophy. It is a recognition of nearly a decade of enforcement, public education and community participation.
But the next test may be harder.
With vaping becoming increasingly accessible—particularly to younger Filipinos—the city now faces the challenge of proving that its smoke-free success can also translate into effective vape-free protection.
And that could determine whether Baguio’s ASEAN recognition becomes simply an award—or a long-term public-health model for the Philippines and the rest of Southeast Asia.
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