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Recent research has suggested most smokers in low- and middle-income countries are not receiving the support they need to quit.
The warning comes after a study led by the University of York, in collaboration with New York University and Harvard University, found that just 13 lower-income countries provide the full range of tobacco cessation services recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
These services, which include behavioural counselling and free or subsidised medication, are considered the gold standard for helping smokers quit.
Kamran Siddiqi, from the Hull York Medical School, said: "Healthcare services have a fundamental responsibility to treat people with tobacco addiction.
"Evidence shows that such interventions are not only cost-effective and easy to integrate but also drive substantial health and economic improvements."
The review recommends several affordable strategies for expanding support, even in countries with limited resources.
These include national quitlines, mobile health apps, community health workers in rural areas, and routine patient screening systems such as "Ask-Advise-Connect."
Researchers also stressed the importance of removing financial barriers to proven smoking-cessation medications, such as nicotine patches, cytisine, and varenicline, by ensuring they are covered by governments or insurers.
More than 80 per cent of tobacco users are said to live in developing nations.