There are many different causes for this condition, but most of them are due to a limited understanding of the harmful effects of tobacco smoke and insufficient knowledge.

I don't agree with your take as to why smoking is on the rise in developing countries.

The main reason that drives people in developing countries to smoke is agressive marketing, which especially targets young people.

Health benefits of quitting smoking: The body will no longer accumulate toxins, eliminating the causes and conditions that cause these diseases. If you quit smoking before age 50, you will have a 50% reduction in the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease after quitting for one year, a 50% reduction in the risk of lung cancer.

Only 3–5% of self-quitters achieve prolonged abstinence for 6–12 month after a given quit attempt.

It doesn't matter how much you emphasize the harmful effects of tobacco use. Once a person is addicted, it is pretty hard to get him/her out, especially without cessation tools (e.g. vaping, nicotine patches, etc.) and/or medical help.

What does work, however, is:

1. increasing prices;

2. banning advertising; and

3. banning any type of design/logos, substituting them with warnings and plain font texts.