World Consumers Rights Day celebrated with informative Expo
With March 15 each year being slated for the observance of World Consumers Day in Guyana, Consumer Affairs Department of the Ministry of Business and the Guyana National Bureau of Standards, yesterday hosted a picturesque and informative expo on Main Street, Georgetown.
The event also featured the presence and participation of many other sister agencies of the Ministry of Business.
The initiative staged under the theme, ‘Trusted Smart Products’ was geared at ensuring the public become sensitized to the importance of purchasing Smart Products that are reliable, safe, and of course authentic.
Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission’s, Allison Parker, noted that the initiative was also geared at ensuring consumers use the appropriate powering mediums for their Smart devices.
She said that it was also the intention behind the venture to ensure that consumers become aware of the pros and cons of using Smart devices and also ensuring they secured proper security methods for their devices, especially since advancing technology is rapidly taking over today’s society.
Director of Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission, Dawn Cush, welcomed the gathering expressing her pleasure at the level of attendance by media representatives, the public and participating entities. She added that World Consumer Rights day was indeed an important feature around the globe, noting that the level of yesterday’s initiative was indeed a sign that the observance is going places locally.
Among the entities participating at yesterday’s function, were the Competition and Affairs Commission (CCAC) GTT, Digicel, Public Utilities Commission (PUC), CARICOM Rapid Alert System for the Exchange of Information on Dangerous (Non Food) Consumer Goods (CARREX), and others.
Participating entities showcased booths at the function, and were all equipped with promotional material that showcased their products and services. Several schools were well represented at the expo and all seemed enthusiastic as was evident from their interaction with business representatives present in the booths at the event.
The consumer movement marks March 15 with World Consumer Rights Day every year, as a means of raising global awareness about consumer rights and needs. Celebrating the day is a chance to demand that the rights of all consumers are respected and protected, and to protest against market abuses and social injustices which undermine those rights.
World Consumer Rights Day was inspired by President John F Kennedy, who sent a special message to the US Congress on March 15, 1962, in which he formally addressed the issue of consumer rights. He was the first world leader to do so. The consumer movement first marked that date in 1983 and now uses the day every year to mobilise action on important issues and campaigns.