Consumer rights: more needs to be done

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On March 15, 1962, US president John Fitzgerald Kennedy stated the four fundamental consumer rights: The right to safety, the right to be informed, the right to choose, and the right to be heard. But have these rights been respected? Simon Okitela spoke to Anti-Counterfeit Network (ACN) chairman Fred Muwema on the relevance of World Consumer Rights Day and strides Uganda has made to promote it.

Q: Would you say the rights have been accorded to consumers as stated by the US president then?

A: It has taken us 63 years since president Kennedy‘s statement to enact the Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2023, a law aimed at regulating anti competitive behaviour and protecting consumer rights.

Our counterparts in Kenya enacted their Consumer Protection Act in 2012 and they have leapfrogged us. That said, we have incorporated the best practice of consumer protection in our law as it safeguards the consumer right to safety, information, choice and value for money.

However, it is one thing to pass the law and another to implement it. The increased proliferation of counterfeit and substandard goods on the market, deceptive product information, the absence of proper consumer redress channels and a weak regulatory framework is a signal that we need to do more to implement the law in order to benefit from our new consumer protection regime.

As a country, have we done enough in creating awareness to the consumer about their rights?

Unfortunately, most consumers are not aware of their consumer rights. They also don’t access adequate product information to enable them make informed choices according to their individual wishes. This is ironical if you consider that we are living in an information age where there is an information overflow, which should significantly increase consumer awareness and product information.

The modernisation we enjoy is beset with its own challenges. We are now entrapped in the global culture of consumerism, which comes along with false advertising, misleading labels as to product specification or expiry dates chiselled by a thriving counterfeit and illicit trade.

This state of the world makes it difficult for consumers to differentiate between genuine and fake products and this complicates consumer awareness efforts because every time you create awareness about a genuine product, you are also creating awareness about its fake version.

A 2022 survey conducted by ACN in the Elgon sub-region revealed that over 60% of the respondents had unknowingly purchased a counterfeit or substandard product.

Despite the above challenges, we have no option but to strengthen the institutional framework of bodies like the Uganda National Bureau of Standards, Uganda Communications Commission and National Drug Authority to continue carrying out nationwide consumer education campaigns. But at the same time, brands need to do more to sensitise consumers about their product features.

What areas do stakeholders have to focus as we celebrate World Consumer Rights Day this year?

The theme for this year’s World Consumer Rights Day is A Just Transition to Sustainable Lifestyle. This theme makes sustainable consumption and healthy lifestyle a necessity.

In Uganda, we have many businesses which do not adopt sustainable practices on waste management, pollution etc. We also have consumer knowledge deficiency, inaccessibility and affordability of quality essential products. This does not give the desired meaning to a celebration of the World Consumer Rights Day.

One of the highlights of the precarious situation faced by the consumer was raised by the President. In his national address of February 6, he announced plans to ban the sale of shelled contaminated groundnuts, saying they are linked to the rise of deadly diseases like cancer because they contain aflatoxins.

Groundnuts are a delicacy in Uganda, but many consumers have no means of knowing whether they are contaminated or not. So many Ugandans are going to be diseased by these groundnuts. Measures must be taken to protect our general food value chain because almost every food that we eat is contaminated or under threat of contamination.

The global e-commerce market size was reported to be $25.93 trillion in 2023 and it is projected to grow by 18.9% from 2024 to 2030. Is e-commerce enhancing or undermining our consumer rights?

A study by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, which started in 2016, shows that only 64 countries in the world have consumer protection laws on e-commerce. The same report shows that only 66 countries have education initiatives on e-commerce. The e-commerce trade platform is picking up in Uganda, but it remains a grey area when it comes to observance of consumer rights.

From what you are saying, it seems that we, the consumers, are also undermining our own consumer rights by providing a market for counterfeit and substandard products. But surely, we cannot be the only ones to blame. What is your comment on this state of affairs?

At ACN, we have studied consumer behaviour and patterns and concluded that consumers are a major driver and victim of fake products. We have developed the acronym DANCCANI as a guide to better understanding of the growth of counterfeits on the market.

“D” stands for differentiation. Most consumers cannot differentiate between genuine and fake because the product packaging looks the same and the genuine and fake products are sold in the same distribution channel.

‘’A’’ stands for affordability. We are a very price-sensitive society, which is always looking for a good bargain. The counterfeiters take advantage of the hard economic times and they dupe us with cheaper but fake alternatives.

‘’N’’ stands for normalcy. The sub culture of counterfeiting is ingrained in us, so the buying of a fake product has become a new normal.

‘’C’’ stands for convenience. Many of these illicit products can be conveniently bought from street hawkers or a nearby store, which is often outside the gazetted distribution channel of the genuine product.

‘’C’’ stands for concealed danger. People who go for cheaper fake products would not buy them if they knew the serious health risks posed by these products. We are sicker today because of the concealed health dangers that these fake products contain.

‘’A’’ stands for aspiration. The increased demand for branded goods is a reflection for people’s aspiration to improve their socio-economic standing in society. However, aspiration is driving us to buy fake versions of the genuine product.

‘’N’’ stands for negligence. How many times does a consumer check the product ingredients or expiry date before buying? Many people just send bodaboda riders to shop for them without taking care to verify the source of purchase.

‘’I‘’ stands for ineffective co-operation. Counterfeits are thriving on the market because there is unco ordinated movement of troops between the consumers, brands and regulators. The market is flooding with fake products because we are sleeping on the job, intentionally or otherwise.

What contribution would you say ACN has had in advocating for consumer rights and the sale of standard products?

In the last 10 years, ACN has tried to deepen public awareness about counterfeits and substandard products, through workshops, research, legal and enforcement actions and several media campaigns.

We recently introduced Bleep, a digital platform that allows consumers to report suspected counterfeit and substandard products so that brands/regulators can verify the reports and take remedial action. Learn more at https://bleep.ug.