The Chronicle
Business Reporter
The Ministry of Industry and Commerce will today hold a stakeholder consultative meeting in Bulawayo on consumer protection policy with outcomes expected to feed into the draft Consumer Protection Policy document that is being developed.
The consultative meeting runs concurrently with consumer education awareness, which the ministry in collaboration with the Consumer Protection Commission will be rolling in in the city.
“The Ministry of Industry and Commerce is currently developing the Consumer Protection Policy which will augment the Consumer Protection Act (Chapter 14:14).
“The ministry will be conducting stakeholder consultations on the draft Consumer Protection Policy.
“The consultation meetings will play a pivotal role in ensuring that stakeholder views are incorporated in the draft consumer protection policy document,” the ministry said.
Presentations are expected to be made by the Consumer Protection Commission, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Department and the ministry’s legal services department.
According to the draft policy, it is developed for the purposes of safeguarding consumers against unfair practices in the market place.
The policy seeks to protect consumers from businesses that engage in unfair practices which include inter alia, multi-tier pricing, fraudulent offers, failure to label products properly and disclosure of personal information to third parties.
It encourages businesses to engage in fair and ethical business practice by emphasising adherence to consumer rights
The overall objective of the ZCPP is to increase the Consumer Protection Index from the current 25 percent to 60 percent by 2030.
The CPC is a corporate body capable of suing and being sued in its corporate name and performing all acts that body corporates may by law perform.
The commission will among other functions protect consumers from unconscionable, unreasonable, unjust or otherwise improper trade practices; as well as deceptive, misleading, unfair or fraudulent conduct.
Article Source: The Chronicle