THE world yesterday commemorated World Consumer Rights Day, amid renewed calls to ensure that every product in the marketplace — from food and medicine to electronics and digital goods — is safe, reliable and trustworthy.
This year’s event was held under the theme, Safe Products, Confident Consumers.
The day traces its origins to March 15, 1962, when former United States president John F Kennedy addressed the US Congress on the need to protect consumers. He observed that although consumers constituted the largest economic group, they were the only major group whose voices were often not heard.
More than six decades later, that warning still rings true.
Many consumers continue to get the short end of the stick. Markets remain flooded with counterfeit, expired, underweight and substandard products — often sold through misleading advertising and deceptive marketing practices.
Government and manufacturers have, from time to time, conducted blitzes to flush out such products. Yet the problem persists, largely because cheap, substandard goods continue to find a ready market.
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Even more alarming is the growing sale of expired foodstuffs and medicine on the streets, exposing unsuspecting consumers to serious health risks.
This calls for stronger enforcement and penalties that act as a meaningful deterrent.
Zimbabwe already has legislation designed to safeguard consumers. The Consumer Protection Act prohibits manufacturers from selling or marketing goods or services that fail to meet mandatory safety and quality standards.
Consumers have the right to receive goods and services that are safe, free from defects and hazards, and reasonably suitable for their intended purpose. Products should also be durable, serviceable where necessary and offer fair value.
But legislation alone is not enough.
Authorities must ensure that the laws already in the books are vigorously enforced. Regulatory institutions must be adequately resourced and empowered to investigate complaints, remove unsafe products from the market and penalise offenders.
Equally important is consumer education. Citizens must understand their rights and feel empowered to demand accountability when their rights are violated.
There is, however, a silver lining. Cabinet last week approved the Consumer Protection Policy (2026-30) aimed at safeguarding consumer rights in an increasingly complex and dynamic marketplace.
The policy seeks to regulate the supply of goods and services, safeguard consumer rights and promote fair trading practices across the economy.
It also encourages the production of quality goods and services which meet the needs of an empowered consumer, ultimately improving the country’s domestic and international competitiveness.
Crucially, the policy aims to close existing legislative and institutional gaps, strengthen coordination among agencies and promote fair, transparent and accountable practices across the economy.
Its strategic pillars include strengthening the institutional architecture for consumer protection, improving dispute resolution and redressing mechanisms, enhancing the legal framework, ensuring product safety and quality, combating counterfeit and illicit trade, promoting consumer education and addressing emerging challenges in e-commerce and digital transactions.
Businesses, for their part, should recognise that consumer protection is not an obstacle to growth but a foundation for sustainable success. Ethical conduct, transparent pricing and quality assurance build long-term customer loyalty and strengthen corporate reputations.
Beyond protecting individuals, consumer protection strengthens the entire economy. When people trust the marketplace, they are more willing to spend, invest and engage with businesses. Confidence in fair trading practices encourages healthy competition and rewards companies that prioritise quality and integrity.
Conversely, a marketplace riddled with fraud and exploitation erodes public trust and undermines economic activity.
Ultimately, protecting consumers is about safeguarding dignity and fairness in the marketplace. No economy can thrive where consumers are exposed to exploitation.
Strong consumer protection frameworks ensure that markets work not only for businesses, but also for the people they are meant to serve.
As the father of modern economics, Adam Smith famously observed:
“Consumption is the sole end and purpose of all production; and the interest of the producer ought to be attended to only so far as it may be necessary for promoting that of the consumer.”-newsda
