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Consumer Education

UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection on consumer education

Governments should develop or encourage the development of general consumer education and information programmes, bearing in mind the cultural traditions of the people concerned. The aim of such programmes should be to enable people to act as discriminating consumers, capable of making an informed choice of goods and services, and conscious of their rights and responsibilities.

In developing such programmes, special attention should be given to the needs of disadvantaged consumers, in both rural and urban areas,including low-income consumers and those with low or non-existent literacy levels.

Consumer education should, where appropriate, become an integral part of the basic curriculum of the educational system, preferably as a component of existing subjects.

Consumer education and information programmes should cover such important aspects of consumer protection as the following:

1. Health, nutrition, prevention of food-borne diseases and food adulteration;
2. Product hazards;
3. Product labelling;
4. Relevant legislation, how to obtain redress, and agencies and organizations for consumer protection;
5. Information on weights and measures, prices, quality, credit Conditions and availability of basic necessities; and
6. As appropriate, pollution and environment.

Governments should encourage consumer organizations and other interested groups, including the media, to undertake education and information programmes, particularly for the benefit of low-income consumer groups in rural and urban areas.

Business should, where appropriate, undertake or participate in factual and relevant consumer education and information programmes.

Bearing in mind the need to reach rural consumers and illiterate consumers, Governments should, as appropriate, develop or encourage the development of consumer information programmes in the mass media.

Governments should organize or encourage training programmes for educators, mass media professionals and consumer advisers, to enable them to participate in carrying out consumer info.

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