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9 Nov 2010

ESCWA Workshop on Customer Protection and Lebanese Economic Policies

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ESCWA opened at the at the UN House in Beirut a workshop on Linking Consumer Protection to National Economic Policy in Lebanon, held in cooperation with Lebanese Ministry of Economy and Trade.

The opening of the workshop featured addresses by acting director of ESCWA Economic Development and Globalization Division (EDGD), Tarik Alami, and acting director of the Ministry of Economy and Trade Fouad Fleifel, representing Minister Muhammad Safadi.
 
Alami said in his statement that the sharp increase in world-wide commodity prices over the past few years has raised serious concerns about the food and nutrition situation of poor people. Countries that are net food importers have found themselves facing challenges and unable to lower commodity prices in the short term. Therefore, they should “employ policies aiming at first at helping poor people cope with higher food and energy bills, and second at protecting consumers from non-competitive or monopolistic behavior that might aggravate the problem.” Alami called for increasing consumer knowledge with financial products and services to ensure consumers ability to compare financial products and services before and after purchase. Consumer protection is “not confined to goods, but it also extends to financial products and services,” he said.
 
 
Alami noted UN guidelines on consumer protection, and underlined the work of officials at the consumer protection directorate, especially at a time when universal food and fuel prices are increasing. He affirmed that the workshop aims at “increasing understanding of consumer protection structure and laws in Lebanon and new emerging issues relating to consumer protection; increasing understanding of major elements of national economic policy in Lebanon as it relates to the work of the consumer protection directorate CPD. Availability, sources, meanings, and relevance of economic data of the Lebanese economy to better serve CPD aims; improving understanding of Intellectual Property Protection Office in Lebanon  (IPPO), its mandate, activities, accomplishments and link to consumer protection; offering hands-on exercises in accessing and querying for Lebanese official trade data; and enhancing understanding of Lebanon’s major trade agreements and their significance in relation to consumer protection.”  
 
Fleifel tackled for his part the consumer protection law (659, issued on 4 February 2005), concerned with protecting the consumer and their quality of life. He said that it was among the priorities of the ministry to ensure the flow of trade and protecting citizens from risks to general security and safety, “this brings us to the active role played by the consumer protection directorate to achieve its goals, i.e. ensuring a safe and just trade environment for both consumer and trade sector, and participating in stimulating Lebanese economy by safeguarding high criteria to protect consumers.”
 
Fleifel reminded the audience of the workshop’s aim to train consumer protection directorate inspectors, whose role must be emphasized in stimulating Lebanese economy and taking on big tasks. The most salient among these, according to Fleifel, is “the study of product pricing and quality for goods sold in Lebanon, routine inspections of shopping malls based on risk assessments, pre-emptive advice-giving on trade issues, and responses to consumer complaints and demands.”
 
Deliberations of the 3-day workshop feature addresses by 12 speakers on issues of national economic policy, and its links to consumer protection.
 
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