With World Consumer Rights Day to be commemorated this week, the need for educating consumers about their rights has come to the fore.
“The promotion of corporate responsibility and fair-trade principles will also take place. The outcomes of these discussions will help regulators to remain agile to protect consumers in this changing landscape,” said Deputy Commissioner at the National Consumer Commission (NCC), Thezi Mabuza.
Speaking at a media briefing in Pretoria on Monday, Mabuza averred the need for all stakeholders within the consumer protection landscape to cooperate in the quest for the effective protection of consumers.
“The promotion of corporate responsibility and fair-trade principles will also take place. The outcomes of these discussions will help regulators to remain agile to protect consumers in this changing landscape,” she said.
The briefing came as the NCC in partnership with the Competition Commission of South Africa, Mpumalanga Department of Economic Development and Tourism and various regulatory bodies under the umbrella of the Consumer Protection Forum (CPF) are set to commemorate World Consumer Rights Day (WCRD 2025). The day is commemorated annually on 15 March globally.
However, this year it will be celebrated on 14 March 2025.
To bring the message closer to home, in South Africa, the day is observed with the theme “Empowering Consumers, Balancing Rights with Ethical Business Practices.”
Head of Education and Advocacy at the NCC, Poppy Kweyama, said the global event aims to boost awareness about consumer rights and push for fair trade practices in the marketplace.
“World Consumer Rights Day, first observed in 1983, has become a key event for promoting consumer awareness,” Kweyama said.
Kweyama said many consumers still fall victim to fraud, misinformation, unsafe products, and unethical business practices.
“In today’s digital world, issues such as data privacy, online scams, misleading digital advertisements, and unfair pricing have added new dimensions to consumer protection. Each year brings different challenges in the consumer protection space. It has always been our view, as it is our mandate that no consumer should be subjected to unfair and unconscionable practices from unscrupulous suppliers.
“It is also our view that for a harmonised marketplace, we need to empower consumers while nudging suppliers into complying with various consumer laws,” she explained.
This year’s activities will include consumer education and business compliance inspections conducted by various regulators in the consumer space to enforce compliance.
In addition, a business breakfast will be held on Thursday,13 March, where various regulators will unpack topics such as competition concerns and safety in the food value chain.
“The breakfast is an opportunity for the Competition Commission to engage with business leaders in the area to gain insight into the concerns small-scale farmers, retailers, wholesalers, and large agri-businesses have including the barriers to entry and trade they may face,” head of Advocacy at the Competition Commission Andile Gwabeni said.
He said that the breakfast will also raise awareness of the findings of the Commission’s Fresh Produce Market Inquiry (FPMI).
Released in January, the inquiry began on 31 March 2023 and assessed the fresh produce value chain across three main themes, including the efficiency of the value chain, concentrating on fresh produce market facilities; market dynamics of key inputs and their impact on producers, and barriers to entry, expansion and participation.
The inquiry, in the main, focused on five fruits, namely: apples, citrus (notably oranges and soft citrus), bananas, pears and table grapes, along with six vegetables, including potatoes, onions, carrots, cabbage, tomatoes and spinach. These products are staples in South African households.
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