Generator safety: Deaths from CO poisoning on the rise

Deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning associated with the use of portable generators are increasing, according to new information released by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

There were 85 carbon monoxide poisoning deaths attributed to the use of generators in 2006, the year covered in the latest CPSC study. The estimated number of generator-related CO fatalities doubled in 2005 and 2006 from the two prior years, with a combined estimate of 182 fatalities in 2005 and 2006 compared to an estimated 92 in 2003 and 2004, the agency reported. One reason for the sharp spike in 2005 was likely a high number of severe weather events that caused widespread power outages, including hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Non-weather related CO fatalities associated with generator use are also on the rise—by 53 percent from 2004 to 2005, and another 41 percent from 2005 to 2006. In contrast to 2005, the busiest hurricane season since records have been kept, there were no hurricanes that made landfall in the U.S. in 2006.

Recently, Underwriters Laboratories asked us to help get the word out on generator safety and to call attention to its first standard for portable generators, which took effect in March. The standard—UL 2201—addresses hazards associated with the typical use of generators, primarily those related to CO poisoning.

According to UL, the new performance requirements facilitate safe outdoor use of UL-listed portable generators during storms or poor weather conditions, as well as provide clear usage labels for consumers to help reduce the known risks of CO poisoning and electrocution.

Here are some tips on generator safety that our readers have found helpful..

• Never operate a generator indoors or in any enclosed or partially enclosed area—even if you think you can adequately ventilate the space.
• Keep generators away from windows, doors, air conditioners, and vents where gases can enter the house. Outside, always be conscious of where the exhaust gas is moving, and stay out of its path.
• Maintain working carbon-monoxide detectors throughout your home.
• Properly store and handle the gasoline. Never refuel the generator while it's running; stop the engine and allow it to cool first.
• Store gasoline safely. Keep it outside in a cool place away from the house or a heat source. Treat gas with a stabilizer (about $5 to treat 25 gallons) to preserve it for up to a year. And dispose of old fuel by using it in mowers and other outdoor equipment.
• Be sure the generator is properly grounded, and use extreme caution around wet electrical cords. Use a portable GFCI device with extension cords whenever you use your generator.
• Never connect a generator directly to a home's wiring. If the generator is used to power home circuits, always use a properly installed transfer switch (about $600 installed).
• Keep connections safe. For small generators, use extension cords rated for the wattage they're carrying.

For more information see our most recent report on generators including Ratings and recommendations.

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/portgen.html

Portable Generator Hazards

Consumer Product Safety Commission Safety Alert

Portable generators are useful when temporary or remote electric power is needed, but they also can be hazardous. The primary hazards to avoid when using a generator are carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning from the toxic engine exhaust, electric shock or electrocution, fire and burns.

Every year, people die in incidents related to portable generator use. Most of the incidents associated with portable generators reported to CPSC involve CO poisoning from generators used indoors or in partially-enclosed spaces.

Carbon Monoxide Hazards

When used in a confined space, generators can produce high levels of CO within minutes. When you use a portable generator, remember that you cannot see or smell CO. Even if you do not smell exhaust fumes, you may still be exposed to CO.

Danger labels are required on all portable generators manufactured or imported on or after May 14, 2007.

If you start to feel sick, dizzy, or weak while using a generator, get to fresh air RIGHT AWAY. DO NOT DELAY. The CO from generators can rapidly kill you.

Follow these safety tips to protect against CO poisoning.

• NEVER use a generator inside homes, garages, crawlspaces, sheds, or similar areas, even when using fans or opening doors and windows for ventilation. Deadly levels of carbon monoxide can quickly build up in these areas and can linger for hours, even after the generator has shut off.

• Follow the instructions that come with your generator. Locate the unit outdoors and far from doors, windows, and vents that could allow CO to come indoors.

• Install battery-operated CO alarms or plug-in CO alarms with battery back-up in your home, according to the manufacturer’s instructions. CO alarms should be certified to the requirements of the latest safety standards (UL 2034, IAS 6-96, or CSA 6.19.01). Test batteries monthly.

To avoid CO poisoning when using generators:

• Never run generators indoors, including garages, basements, crawlspaces and sheds.
• Get to fresh air right away if you start to feel dizzy or weak.

Electrical Hazards

• Generators pose a risk of shock and electrocution, especially if they are operated in wet conditions. If you must use a generator when it is wet outside, protect the generator from moisture to help avoid the shock/electrocution hazard, but do so without operating the generator indoors or near openings to any building that can be occupied in order to help avoid the CO hazard. Operate the generator under an open, canopy-like structure on a dry surface where water cannot reach it or puddle or drain under it. Dry your hands, if wet, before touching the generator.

• Connect appliances to the generator using heavy-duty extension cords that are specifically designed for outdoor use. Make sure the wattage rating for each cord exceeds the total wattage of all appliances connected to it. Use extension cords that are long enough to allow the generator to be placed outdoors and far away from windows, doors and vents to the home or to other structures that could be occupied. Check that the entire length of each cord is free of cuts or tears and that the plug has all three prongs. Protect the cord from getting pinched or crushed if it passes through a window or doorway.

• NEVER try to power the house wiring by plugging the generator into a wall outlet, a practice known as “backfeeding.” This is extremely dangerous and presents an electrocution risk to utility workers and neighbors served by the same utility transformer. It also bypasses some of the built-in household circuit protection devices.

Fire Hazards

• Never store fuel for your generator in the home. Gasoline, propane, kerosene, and other flammable liquids should be stored outside of living areas in properly-labeled, non-glass safety containers. Do not store them near a fuel-burning appliance, such as a natural gas water heater in a garage.

• Before refueling the generator, turn it off and let it cool down. Gasoline spilled on hot engine parts could ignite.

5123/0407

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/portgen.html

Ghana to host conference on consumer protection in Africa

Ghana is to host an international conference on consumer protection in Africa, coming September 8-9, 2009 in Accra.

More than 250 policy makers, regulators, journalists and representatives from financial institutions and their apex organizations, the education sector, consumer protection agencies, and development partners from over 30 countries will participate in the conference.

The conference would be hosted in collaboration with the Partnership for Making Finance Work for Africa (MFW4A) on the theme “Promoting Financial Capability and Consumer Protection – A step forward towards financial inclusion in Africa.”

A statement from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning issued in Accra on Thursday, quoted Dr Kwabena Duffuor, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning saying "Promoting financial capability is about raising awareness, promoting knowledge, building trust, and changing behaviour.”

“And it is not limited to educating consumers and enabling them to take informed decisions on savings, loan and investment products”, he added.

According to him, management and staff of financial institutions need to be trained to become more responsive to the needs of their clients, and supervisors need the capacity to protect consumers against fraud and other bad business practices.

The conference is being organized against the background that low-income households in Africa often have limited access to demand-oriented and affordable financial services.

They include savings, loans, and insurance, which means they have to revert to more expensive and less secure traditional alternatives of saving and borrowing and remain vulnerable to adverse shocks.

Research has shown that in order to strengthen financial institutions in Africa, there is the need to promote financial capability, to empower people to be capable of managing their financial assets and liabilities and to better understand their rights and responsibilities vis-à-vis financial institutions.

However, strengthening the financial capability of the population is not sufficient since governments also have a role to play in protecting consumers by ensuring that financial institutions apply recognized standards and suitable codes of conducts.

In order to create sustainable ‘win-win situations’ in this long-run, it is believed that financial capability measures need to go hand in hand with responsible, transparent and reliable services provided by financial institutions.

In moderated regional and national working groups, participants will have the chance to develop ideas and proposals as to what they think should be done in their country or region to improve financial capability.

A panel on social marketing will show films and discuss which marketing channels can be used best to address the different target groups of financial capability campaigns.

The Government of Ghana, together with the Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network (GHAMFIN), will hold as a prelude to the conference, a day’s Pre-Conference on “Promoting Financial Capability and Consumer Protection in Ghana” on September 7, 2009.

According to Mr Seth Terkper, Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, “Financial capability is very high on the political agenda of the Government.”

He said “Ghana is one of the first countries in Africa that have developed and started to implement a National Strategy for Financial Literacy and Consumer Protection in the Microfinance Sector”.

Over the past two years, “financial literacy road shows” have been carried out in all 10 regions of Ghana, easy-to-understand educational materials have been developed and distributed, high school quizzes have been organized, and radio programs on saving and responsible borrowing as well as television sitcoms on insurance have been telecast.

All activities will culminate at the Ghana Financial Literacy Week, which will take place from 28 September 28 to October 3, 2009.

Against this background, over 150 Ghanaian and international financial sector champions from the public sector and the financial sector as well as representatives from academia, consumer protection agencies, non-governmental organizations and development partners will discuss and evaluate whether “Ghana is on track and set the right priorities in financial capability and consumer protection”.

Additionally, innovative topics such as “Integrating Financial Capability into High Schools” and “Promoting Financial Capability through Mass Media” will be addressed.


Source: GNA

Global consumer movement sets out conditions for a new financial order

· Consumer education not enough, protection is vital

· Measures to restrict emerging monopolies needed

· Ringfence retail banking to protect consumer deposits

· No bailouts without essential services investment obligations

Consumers International (CI), the global federation of consumer organisations, today set out its solutions to the financial fix calling for effective, affirmative, preventative consumer protection as an essential foundation for moving beyond the economic crisis.

Following worldwide consultation with its membership, CI is submitting its position to the UN Conference on the World Financial Crisis, 24-26 June. This follows ongoing contributions to the UN’s Stiglitz Committee and the OECD.

Joost Martens, Director General of Consumers International, stated that “While CI research has shown most consumers manage their finances responsibly, they have been unfairly blamed by governments, media and industry for creating this crisis through irresponsible borrowing, and then prolonging it through insufficient spending. It is high time the so-called experts start listening to consumers, rather than blaming them for the mess the bankers and governments have created.”

In mapping out the consumer movement’s call for a new financial order, CI argues that the financial crisis began with a failure to protect consumers from bad loans in the US and other mortgage markets. A viable fix for the global economy must include greater regulatory oversight of a far more transparent banking industry.

However, whilst transparency is important, more information for consumers is not enough. The system is simply too complex at present and needs regulatory intervention to remove incomprehensible financial products and services.

Robin Simpson, Senior Policy Advisor at Consumers International, has hinted that “Consumer education is a right, but avoiding financial ruin in the current climate takes more than access to information. No doubt the clients of Bernie Madoff thought their money was in good hands, but the billions he embezzled shows we are all susceptible to the faults in the financial system. Better law, as well as better understanding, is needed”.

The meltdown of the financial industry has also led to bank mergers being hurried through by competition authorities. CI is gravely concerned that the banking monopolies emerging from this crisis pose a danger to consumer choice and protection. We therefore call for strict monitoring and reporting requirements to be established to ensure the new financial services landscape works for the consumer.

There must also be a clear distinction between retail and investment banking activities. Only then can consumer deposits be protected from the irresponsible behaviour and risky speculation of the investment bankers.

CI is also concerned that the current seizure of bank activity is denying millions of poor consumers access to basic bank account services and starving critical public utility developments of investment. This is of particular concern in the developing world where the flow of funds is a vital means of achieving improved consumer access to electricity, water, sanitation and financial services.

CI is therefore demanding that taxpayer bailouts come with mandatory obligations to provide basic consumer banking services and investment in major social infrastructure projects.

According to Robin Simpson “The banking sector has elbowed its way to the front of the public expenditure queue as a result of the threat of collapse, effectively holding a gun to the head of government. They cannot simply swallow taxpayer money and carry on as before; firm commitments to provide for basic consumer needs and services must accompany these bailouts. ”

For more on CI’s work in this area, visit www.consumersinternational.org/financialcrisis

CONSUMER ALERT!!!: Stamina-Rx Dietary Supplement Recalled Nationwide

Unapproved Ingredient Present in Supplement

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals notified patients and healthcare professionals of a nationwide recall of all product sold under the name Stamina-Rx. FDA lab analysis found that the product contained the undeclared ingredient − benzamidenafil. Benzamidenafil is in the same therapeutic class of active pharmaceutical ingredients that are FDA-approved for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED).

Benzamidenafil is not FDA-approved, and poses a threat to consumers because benzamidenafil may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs (such as nitroglycerin) and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels. Consumers with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease often take nitrates and may be most susceptible to adverse effects from this product.

Stamina-Rx is sold predominantly in health food and drug stores nationwide. Customers who have this product in their possession should stop using it immediately. Any adverse events that may be related to the use of this product should be reported to Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Norcross, GA 30071 at toll-free 1-888-855-7919 from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST.

The public is encouraged to submit a report of any serious adverse events that occur with the use of Stamina-Rx to FDA's MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program online at www.fda.gov/MedWatch/report.htm or by phone 1-800-FDA-1088 or by returning the postage paid FDA form 3500, which may be downloaded from www.fda.gov/MedWatch/getforms.htm by mail to MedWatch, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20853-9787 or fax 1-800-FDA-0178.

Fake, Fake And Fake Again!

By Prof. Lade Wosornu
Saturday, 01 December 2007
http://www.newtimesonline.com/content/view/12726/222/

Fake, fake and fake again. Bogus… Imitation… Counterfeit…You see them everywhere… Currencies spare parts perfume DVDs CDs cosmetics fabric dresses shoes booze bags accessories watches brief cases suit cases cigarettes cigars diamond gold bishops priests….

What makes you think that medicines should be free of fakes? Because human lives are directly at stake?

To whom can you turn?

The barons of fake drugs (fakes for short) do not give a jot about your life or mine. Money is their craze. And, it is war out there. They, in one camp, regulators in the other. They do not care what collateral damage is done as they pursue their ill-gotten gains. If Madam Aku Shika, fish monger at Chorkor, gets shot in the cross-fire, just too bad.

Of all the chilling manifestos of these new slave traders, few can be frostier than this: "If God didn’t want them sheered, He won’t have created them sheep."

So, to whom can you turn? Concerning drug regulation systems, it has been shown that only 20 per cent of WHO member states have well-developed ones; 30 per cent have none. In any event, governments and agencies can look out for you so far, but no further. You must learn to look after yourself.

Few fakes get caught, and even fewer deaths from fakes are detected. Best of all, if they get caught, the penalties are less severe.

Fake dealers know all that. They count on all that, as they tot up their dollars but ignore the corpses off whose flesh they feed.


The individual?

What can the individual do to protect himself or herself? Not much! Madam Veronica Gargo, chair, Tsokor Vigilantes, was explaining: "Don’t blame Aku Skika. The ‘pharmacist’ took her new Cedis and gave her capsules for fever. He even said: ‘Actually, Aku, you are lucky. These are the last six capsules left."

So, Madam Gargo shrugged her shoulders and sighed: "How for do!"

She is in good company as witness this report. "In developing countries, public education is also poor. A study in Laos showed that over 60 per cent of peddlers and 80-96 per cent of consumers knew nothing about fakes."

The report adds: "Better education might not make that great a difference. Over 50 per cent of the world lack access to hospitals. A sick man is a desperate man. He will take whatever he can get." Even if it’s fake?

"Ohiafo heor nii ke djirawale." This is Gã: "The poor buy expensively!" And, some times, it would seem, they pay with their lives. But, in this corner, who is counting the dead?

This is G "The poor buy expensively!" And, some times, it would seem, they pay with their lives. But, in this corner, who is counting the dead?

Even the enlightened

What makes you think that only un-lettered stereotypes are hood-winked, conned and down-right robbed in day light? Mr. Oto Weley, faceless ‘aplanke’ and stand-by driver who, first thing in the morning, shows up at the lorry park reeking of ‘fumes’? Or, Madam Mercy Badu, dealer in second-hand beads?

Professor Dr. Dr. Kofi Bosu, PhD, MB, ChB, is current president, Skin Researchers’ Guild. (Pardon me, but the gentleman really prefers the triple appellation: professor, doctor and again doctor.) An experienced traveler, the professor-double-doctor was buying another rolex at Laguna International.

"Is it genuine?" "Fake? Sir? How? Of course…Give you good discount." "How much?"

Gerald Abu, 25, unemployed, of no fixed abode, could scent blood. "You special customer… First today. 50 per cent.... 60…75 per cent..." And so, the professor-double-doctor paid $ 500 ($1,750 in duty-free) ….Smiles…Handshakes…. Two weeks later, in James Town, the ‘gold’ started to fade and the rolex stopped.

For ‘rolex’ substitute Viagra, Multivitamins and the unending life-style products.

Source

Technology makes fakes easier to produce and the Internet speeds the pace of commerce. Sales of fakes will reach $75 billion globally in 2010, an increase of over 90 per cent from 2005.

Fakes have found a natural home in some countries. There has grown a deadly industry. The poorest nations are paying the price, where 50-70 per cent of medicines are fake (WHO). It has been called "One of the greatest atrocities of our time… Mass murder… A form of terrorism against public health…Economic sabotage."


Serious imitation, serious business

Today’s fakes are often impossible to distinguish without chemical testing. The packaging is identical to the real McCoy.

"It used to be amateurs. Now scientists have entered the fray. They can replicate products quickly, complete with perfectly copied packages in amazing detail. Mind you, the content can be boric acid, floor wax and yellow paint."

The business may be criminal. But it is serious and highly organised. The countries which house the perpetrators, also have their share of victims. "Bi ni ker enye akawor ler, ler hu ewong." This is Ga. The child who says his mom should not sleep, also shall not sleep."

See how organised crime runs their fake businesses: networks with suppliers, buyers, distributors, financiers, markets. They have CEOs and CFOs with managers for production, shipping and follow-up.

The manufacturing is a multi-step process in the same town. One factory makes the pills, another ingredients, a third labels and even holographs…Then wholesale markets across the country, followed by global distributors – overland, by air and by ship and so to Africa. Shipments tend to go through mega-ports. Why? Because, where is the safest place to conceal pebbles? Pebble beach…

They also know the markets well. Different drugs for different populations: life-style versus life-saving. There’s also a price-point differential: Expensive (fake) brand names go up to rich Texas. Fake generics and over-the-counter stuff come down to Hwidiem.

Not all economies are created equal

The big boys take care of themselves. In developed countries, the big Pharmas are Alsatians. They jealously guard their brand, their market share and customers. Not so in developing countries. Our markets are less profitable, brand loyalty is fickle and societies less litigious. So, why should they look out for the likes of us?

Tackle the roots

Efforts are being made to cut the problem off at source. Central governments are becoming more effective in the war on fakes. But, problems remain at local authorities. Rules passed in capital cities are not always enforced in Kejebi.

Take this market as an example. A city, 650,000…Six hours south of a capital. Over 30,000 wholesale distributors…Over 40,000 different types of products. Between 80 to 90 per cent are perfect fakes. A host of other businesses support the market and employees. These include hotels, night clubs, transportation and storage.

A new slave trade

If an official were to shut down the fake market, that would ruin the local economy, bankrupt businesses, raise unemployment and create social unrest. This, social unrest, is one thing governments fear most- even more than the black plague.

Therefore, cracking down on known fake cities may be too little, too late. For one thing, factories shall move to shadier, less regulated places. For another, buyers from your town and mine will pursue the loot and not allow them to be closed.

Such are the moguls of this new slave trade. And, here is their favourite value statement: "If God didn’t want them sheered, He won’t have created them sheep".

You’d better watch out for yourself.

**Lade Worsonu is a Professor in Surgery, King Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

Consumers International Blog: Study finds consumer groups are highly trusted in the economic downturn

Consumers International Blog: Study finds consumer groups are highly trusted in the economic downturn

Hidden Flow: The Rising Tide of European e-Waste in West Africa- GHANA

Glen Loyd's Blog: Web watchdog site shut down by Consumers Union

Glen Loyd's Blog: Web watchdog site shut down by Consumers Union

Consumer Protection: A Panacea For Shoddy Goods & Services?

by Jean Lukaz

Pundits in Ghana have always pointed fingers at the ineffectiveness of consumer protection associations in the country in the face of the proliferation of shoddy goods and services. Why consumers are thinking along these lines are a wonder. It is as if consumer protection will get into factories and offices and literally rid the country of this menace.  On the other hand, consumer activism stimulates the market to provide products, processes and services that are better and safer.

Hard or Soft Power?

Consumer protection is not about hard power, the use of physical force. It is rather on the contrary. It is about soft power: dialogue, persuasion, understanding, and joint action by consumers, producers and the government. Hard consumer power rather alienates consumers and consumer activists from the government and producers of goods and services. It is in this light that some people feel that lawyers are probably the best activists when it comes to consumer protection but let’s get this right: is consumer protection about litigation and legal threats? Consumers are generally assumed to be laymen, otherwise irrational in their thinking when they are uninformed. The aim of consumer protection is to present safe products and services in plain lay universal language that is understandable by all so that consumers will put products and services to the right use for which they were purposed.

The Weapon

Consumers are not specialists but in consumption. And the only adverse way consumers react is by way of complaints and boycott. An influx of complaints on a particular product or service is an alarm bell and a call to action. Action is not necessarily litigation, which rather ends up antagonising producers of goods and services. Action is about alerting the producer who may not even be aware of the impact of their products on consumers. Complaints, by way of feedback, arm consumers with the reason to proceed to the next level in case of inaction on the part of producers. When consumer complaints are met with arrogance and denials, industry associations are the next places to visit with the complaints. Consumers may collectively channel their complaints through a consumer protection association or other and request for feedback on the action that will be taken by the industry association within a specified timeframe. Where the industry association compromises or is ineffective, the regulator of the industry is the next point of call and consumers may well put their complaints and grievances in writing even after verbally doing so. One would ask about what to do if the regulator fails to act…in that case there is something definitely wrong with the whole process of consumer complaints management process in the industry or country. This requires a microscopic examination of the structures that have been established to give consumers their value for money. The lawsuit is the last resort if you have the money to bring commercial giants into the courtroom. It may not be worth your complaint to sue unless it is intended to generate negative publicity for the producer in order to sensitise the public about their insensitivity.

The Practicals

To put the above into practice, if you are aggrieved for buying a faulty new automobile and the seller or distributor refuses to repair or replace it, you just make sure you put your complaint or grievance into writing and copy it to a consumer protection association such as The Consumer Partnership (THE-COP). The next step is to send another letter on how you have been treated unfairly by the distributor and what action you request to the Automobile Distributors Association (if there is any), attaching a copy of your previous letter to the distributor. Make sure a copy of this letter is also sent to the consumer protection association that received your first letter (this will help them to monitor and fight on your behalf where the occasion arises). If the industry association in question compromises or does not act on your complaint after the timeframe you requested expires (unless they reply to explain) you then proceed to the regulator of the automobile industry in Ghana: I’m not sure who does…Where there is no regulator or a national consumer ombudsman, the Ministry of Trade in this case may be the next point of contact with your new complaint letter detailing the various actions you have taken that have not received any attention and what action you are requesting. Remember to copy this final letter to your correspondent consumer protection association and attach copies of all correspondence to the Ministry of Trade including relevant receipts and contracts (do not send original copies). If the Ministry fails to respond without explanation within a timeframe it is time to talk to some litigant lawyers. In Ghana the Centre for Public Interest Law (CEPIL) may be of help. They may however take a commission from your claim for their effort even if you do not pay any fees initially. Remember the media at this stage but consult the consumer protection association first as they may give your story the right twist. Other consumers will definitely need to share your experience with such an arrogant distributor so they may not fall victim to their wiles.

To Be or Not to Be?

The question under review here is: Does consumer protection bring sanity into a system? The answer may be a yes and no depending on where you are coming from. If you are coming from the USA, where industry regulation is quite effective, then Ralph Nader has already done most of the work so the answer may be a yes. If you are fortunate to come from Ghana, where regulation of industry is rather ineffective, the answer is a big NO! Consumer protection is just one of the answers and its effectiveness is dependent on a number of factors.

Competition, regulation and standards all go hand in hand in giving consumer protection a boost.

Competition forces otherwise producers of shoddy goods and services to put their best before consumers in order to win a market share. Competition, in the face of the market forces of demand and supply, keeps the best actors in business whilst phasing out the bad and ugly. Lack of competition gives consumers no alternatives to substitute shoddy goods and services for as a monopolistic environment may not be a fertile ground for consumer protection fundamentalism.

Regulation outlines legal norms for those in industry and is bound by law that is mandatorily enforced. The contents of regulations are usually a prerequisite for entry into the industry and pre-establish conformity. However, poor regulation is an epitome of a porous enforcement mechanism and corrupted enforcement agents. In a system where there is virtually no enforcement, there is usually a lack of consumer confidence and consumers may resign to their fate. Consumers in such a system will not formally complain as it ridicules them and makes a mockery of the process and will, thus, become apathetic to the activities of consumer protection associations. Complaints are then replaced with word of mouth moaning to friends and relatives. 

Standards when mandatory are part of regulation and provide an automatic platform for consumer satisfaction. Standards are ‘…rules, guidelines or characteristics for activities or their results, aimed at the achievement of the optimum degree of order in a given context’ (ISO/IEC Guide 2). Standards may also be voluntary whereby members of a body establish a code of conduct to guide their operations. Recognition may be in the form of the use of a well-recognised quality mark or trustmark. Companies and individuals use and adhere to standards voluntarily, or because they are required to by law. When compliance with a standard is not mandated by law, companies and individuals follow the terms of the standards simply because it is in their interest to do so — standards improve the quality of products, processes or services, reassure customers and open up markets. The terms of standards may also be incorporated into government statutes and regulations, in which case companies and individuals must follow them as a matter of law. In some cases, governments initiate and participate in standards development so the standard can be included in legislation. In other cases, governments find that an existing standard can be used to deal with a public policy problem and include it in new legislation.

Complaints, in the face of standards, are also endemic in an environment characterised by corruption, non-conformity and non-enforcement of standards. Consumers, acting rationally, would want the best products and services at the least cost that is readily available. Thus, consumers would look out for certain elements that have been traditionally infused into standards such as health and safety, fitness for purpose (performance), product information and labelling, environmental protection, fair pricing, interoperability (ability of a product to be used in different countries and within a product range) and systems of redress. However, oblivious to the prevalence of shoddy goods and services, consumers may also presume that all products and services on offer are safe for their use- a danger to their health and safety.

So if you find yourself in a country where competition is virtually non-existent, regulation lacks enforcement and where standards are not really working, the only way forward is consumer participation in standardization. When consumers are represented in the standards-making process, their views are taken into account and it subsequently forms an automatic basis for consumer satisfactions albeit this will still require a stringent enforcement mechanism to be manifest.

Consumer participation is also beneficial for manufacturers, because goods and services that adopt standards developed with consumer participation may be more easily accepted in the marketplace.

 

Published in Public Agenda on 11th December, 2006: www.ghanaweb.com/public_agenda

http://www.theconsumerpartnership.org

Towards A Consumer Protection Policy In Ghana

The Constitution of any country spells out the rights of citizens and the state policy defines the remedies. These are then reflected in the legislations, enforcement mechanisms and the administrative structures. So, one needs a clear policy statement from the government, before legislations can be enacted.

Businesses have always found ingenious ways of ripping consumers off and governments have managed to intervene by enacting laws to protect consumers. Laws to control, and punish businesses indulging in, adulteration and short weighing have existed in nearly all ancient civilisations: China, Mesopotamia, etc.

Economics propositioned that ‘the sole and end purpose of all production is consumption’ (Adam Smith). National economic planning policies, thus, aim at allocating scarce resources, as far as possible, to the satisfaction of consumers’ basic needs.

Then there is considerable logical, moral and political force in the proposition that the right person to make the decision about the allocation of resources to his or her own needs is the consumer himself or herself. In earlier times, limited choices made transactions much simpler through the barter system. Trade and the monetisation of societies and their economies were accompanied by innovation and the development of new products and their distribution channels. International trade in modern times is far from bringing perfection and fairness in the market.

Consumers’ Interest as National Interest

American President John F Kennedy moved the consumers’ bill of rights in 1962 in the US Congress saying.. “If a consumer is offered inferior products, if prices are exorbitant, if drugs are unsafe or worthless, if the consumer is unable to choose on an informed basis, then his dollar is wasted, his health and safety may be threatened and national interest suffers.”

Kennedy equated consumers’ interest with national Interest. His speech delivered on 15 March 1962 is what generated the global consumer rights. This date, 15^th March, is now observed as the World Consumer Rights Day, as well as the national consumers’ day in several countries by the global consumer protection movement.

The UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection

The United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection adopted by the UN General Assembly of April 1985 call upon governments to develop, strengthen and maintain a consumer policy, and provide for enhanced protection of consumers by communicating it through various means on seven major themes: 1. Physical Safety, 2. Economic Interests, 3. Standards, 4. Essential Goods and Services, 5. Redress, 6. Education and Information, and 7. Health. Implicitly it spells out what governments need to do to buttress the eight rights of consumers.

Guidelines set out and codify the main elements of consumer protection, and create an international framework within which national consumer protection policies can be worked out. They give consumer policy a clear set of objectives and provide a checklist against which governments can measure their own policies. Being guidelines, they are meant to be adopted and reviewed according to changing times, innovations and new developments such as sustainable consumption.

Even when the Guidelines were being debated in the ECOSOC during 1983-85, sections of the business community lobbied against the adoption by the UN of any Guidelines at all, as well as against specific provisions. Consequently, there were attempts by some governments to remove whole sections. The main argument put forward by business interests against the Guidelines were that they favour an interventionist approach to economic management, were hostile to private enterprise, and that the UN has no role to play in what is essentially an area of national policy.

The US government expressed reservations about the Guidelines and some of its specific provisions on Transnational Corporations (TNCs). The US successfully lobbied for the deletion of specific references to TNCs from the final text. This met the criticism of the former Soviet Union that said that the consumer protection work of the UN was “... justified only if and when it promotes the .... protection of the interests of developing countries in the realm of international economic relations and also the protection of the broad working masses in the world against the dictates of transnational corporations.”

The Guidelines were passed in April 1985 and further reviewed in 1995 after 10 years. The present Consumers International (formerly IOCU) fought for this inclusion of certain elements that protected the poor in the Third World during the review.

Consumer Rights as Human Rights

Every welfare state seeks to provide the protection of the Right to Basic Needs of consumers particularly for the have-nots. The right to basic needs is not just a consumer right, but a human right as well. Article 25 of the UN Declaration of Human Rights says: “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services.” But this right has not found a place in legislations yet.

Former centrally planned economies had this as well the right to work enshrined in their constitutions, and did succeed to a large extent through appropriate state interventions. In the bargain their economies suffered through high deficits and indebtedness. Rather than create enabling mechanisms for a consumer to create opportunities for acquiring the means, the state relied on price controls and heavy subsidies. With capitalism, the poor are becoming poorer, and more needs to be done to alleviate poverty. It has, therefore, become increasingly important for the State to intervene in the demand and supply markets.

Aims of A Consumer Protection Policy

Governments are urged in the UN Guidelines to give special attention to the needs of disadvantaged consumers, in both rural and urban areas, including low-income consumers, and those with very low levels of literacy. But in addressing the basic needs of consumers it covers only three areas: pharmaceuticals, food standards and drinking water. It also addresses policies that ensure the distribution of essential goods and services, but not the entirety of basic survival needs of the ordinary consumer: food, clothing, shelter, education, health care and sanitation.

Energy and transportation are the two other areas of basic needs are not ordinarily basic to the Third World rural consumer. In several developing countries, government policies focus on ensuring food security through an effective public distribution system. In Ghana, where over 30% of the population live below the poverty line, there are no consumer policies to ensure the survival of the poor. A consumer policy and law for Ghana must ensure the survival and protection of the poor from unscrupulous businessmen who exploit their ignorance to sell them expired and hazardous food and substances.

Many countries now have a number of legislations concerning consumer issues. A Consumer Ombudsman in the form of a central body oversees all consumer protections issues with the support of consumer protection laws. It encourages complainants to use its free services for dispute resolution rather than going to a civil court.

Protecting consumers’ economic interests is as important as regulation to ensure that the goods and services are available at a reasonable price and are safe. There is a consumer dimension to almost every state policy and therefore there is a need to take consumer interest into account in all policy decisions through public consultation. Consumer policy is not only about legislation governing consumer interest nor restricted to redressing consumer complaints.

Conclusion

A Consumer policy generally is “To inform the consumer of goods and services in such a way that his purchasing decisions contribute to the functioning of competitive markets, and to protect him where his position in the market is not strong enough to allow him to play this role”. In most developing countries, problems of consumers are more related to the provision of essential services such as drinking water, sanitation, education and health care, than the market-related ones. There is sufficient political, economic, social and legal rationale for governments to adopt an integrated and holistic consumer protection policy that will guide all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) towards genuine consumer welfare.

 

Published in Public Agenda on 4th September 2006: www.ghanaweb.com/public_agenda 

Http://www.theconsumerpartnership.org

 

 

China Pushes Fake "Indian" Drugs in Africa

10 June 2009; http://www.safemedicines.org/

Nigeria's food and drug watchdog, the National Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), has seized Chinese-made fake generic anti-malarial drugs with the label 'Made in India'.

India had long suspected that many Chinese firms conspiring with Nigerian drug traders, were dumping fake drugs in Nigeria, to be sold locally as well as in some other African countries like West Africa, South Africa, Ghana and the Ivory Coast.

After being alerted by the Indian high commissioner in the Nigerian capital Abuja, the Indian government has lodged a strong protest with the Chinese foreign trade ministry.

The Indian high commission in Nigeria had been aware for some time that Chinese companies were pushing fake drugs with the 'Made in India' tag since Indian generic drugs are the preferred choice of importers in Nigeria.

Indian high commissioner Mahesh Sachdev has also taken up the issue with the director-general of NAFDAC Dr Paul Orhii, who has assured that his administration would do its best to stop the fake drugs from entering Nigeria.

India is oncerned that these fake drugs manufactured in China and sold in African nations with the 'Made in India' tag could not only harm the country's reputation but also eat into the share of Indian drugs in the generic drug market in Africa.

The UK newspaper The Observer had also reported recently that fake Chinese drugs were flooding the UK market and Bian Zhenjia, China's deputy commissioner of the State Food and Drug Administration, said that it was wrong to say that China was a major exporter of fake drugs'

''I do not agree with what the foreign media has been saying. The Chinese government has always paid great attention to cracking down on fake drugs,'' Bian told a news conference in Beijing yesterday.

He however admitted that the problem could lie with some overseas companies having deals with illegal producers in China where foreign companies import chemicals from China and then use them to produce the drugs.

China has a flourishing but badly regulated pharmaceutical industry, with numerous underground factories and illegal manufacturers of spurious drugs thriving with little or no supervision at all.

In 2006, nearly 100 people in Panama are believed to have died after consuming toxic, mislabelled drugs in cough syrup from China.

Hundreds had also died due to allergic reactions caused by contaminants in the blood thinner heparin imported from China, which eventually led to the product being recalled in the US.

A diabetes drug linked to deaths in China, was pulled out after samples were found containing six times the normal amount of a chemical used to lower blood sugar.

The Chinese drug regulator had to recall many counterfeit and shoddy drugs and herbal medicines, including Chinese versions of Viagra in China itself.

Chinese, and now Indian, companies have been accused of selling fake drugs in Nigeria's $298-million pharmaceutical market, nearly 60 per cent of which comprises imports.

Although, the $298 figure looks small, it is attractive to fake drug manufacturers. According to a survey conducted in Nigeria in 2007, fake drugs make up for over 50 per cent of all drug sales in th country. The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, puts thefigure of fake drugs circulating in the country at nearly 70 per cent.

The NAFDAC website shows that it has blacklisted more than 30 Indian and Chinese companies for exporting fake drugs into the country.

The Nigerian fake drug trade operates with mafia-like thoroughness and is run by wealthy businessmen with links to the underworld.

The director-general of NAFDAC is regarded as one of the most dangerous jobs in the world.

Nigerian minister of information, Dorothy "Dora" Akunyili, who was the previous director-general of NAFDAC had been fighting a relentless battle during her tenure with drug traders in Nigeria by publicly burning seized fake drugs and conducting massive raids with armed police battalion.

The wealthy fake drug lords struck back by burning down NAFDAC labs and buildings and even made an attempt to kill her. Akunyili narrowly escaped death when a bullet grazed her head after suspected assassins opened fire on her official car in 2003.

Nobody knows the way the Nigerian fake drug market operates as Akunyil does. A pharmacologist by profession, her diabetic sister, Vivian Edemobi , died in 1988 after being administered fake insulin for two years.

According to Akunyili, who is now the Nigerian minister of information, fake drug manufacturers have become so sophisticated, that even multinational drug companies find it difficult to say whether their own drugs in Nigeria are genuine or fakes.

Consumer Protection & Public Utilities- Public Utilities and Regulatory Commission (PURC) GHANA

Consumer Protection

The Bureau of Consumer Services (BCS) within the PURC Secretariat has the responsibility of ensuring (in collaboration with other bureaux) that the regulated utilities deliver good quality of service to meet consumer expectations.

The bureau has been engaged in the following:

• ·         Providing responsive, efficient and accountable management of consumer complaints;
  
• ·         Protecting rights of consumers with regard to quality of service;
  
• ·         Advising consumers of their rights and responsibilities, and conducting public education to help customers make informed choices;
  
• ·         Investigating consumer complaints and resolving service related disputes.
  

 

The following specific activities were undertaken:

Consumer Complaints

Monitoring of consumer complaints is one of the feedback mechanisms that enable the Commission to respond to consumer demands and to correct lapses in service delivery. In this regard, the Commission has established, and continues to improve on, mutually acceptable channels of communication with consumers to facilitate the process of making, receiving and responding to consumer complaints and concerns.

During the period under review, 170 complaints were received and satisfactorily resolved. These complaints include among other things the following:

• ·         Wrongful disconnections
  
• ·         Wrong billing
  
• ·         Imposition of prepayment meters
  

The most protracted complaint was brought by Holex (Eastwood) Timber Products Limited against the Electricity Company of Ghana Limited (ECG). This case, referred to the Commission by the High Court, involved wrong billing and wrongful disconnection. Unfortunately, the Commission was unable to secure an amicable resolution due to the uncooperative attitude of one of the parties.

The BCS, with the assistance of the Bureau of Legal Services (BLS), adopts the following steps in resolving complaints lodged with the Commission.

 

• ·         Acknowledgement of receipt of complaint.
  
• ·         Investigation by the BCS to examine the merit of the complaint.
  
• ·         The Utility asked to investigate and submit report.
  
• ·         Receipt and examination of the Utility's report.
  
• ·         Further inquiry and mediation.
  
• ·         Recommendations based on findings to the Commission.
  
• ·         Parties informed about the decision of the Commission.
  
• ·         Monitoring the enforcement of the Commission's decision.
  

 

The BCS also assisted in resolving some community complaints, which were not directly lodged with the Commission. These included an acute water shortage in parts of the Central and Ashanti Regions especially in Cape Coast, Mankessim and surrounding areas; and parts of Kumasi East.

In all cases, the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) was reminded that any circumstances that result in interruption of water supply to their customers must be explained to them to avoid negative publicity. Moreover, the PURC ought to be apprised of interruption in supply and the steps taken to restore supply. The Commission also demanded that prior notification and explanation of any prolonged interruption in water supply in future must be given to the affected consumers. It must be stated that PURC has ensured the inclusion of these minimum requirements in the utilities' customer charters.

As part of PURC's objectives to ensure that consumers are not exploited, and that their rights are adequately and effectively protected, the Commission, in pursuance of Section 3(b) of Act 538, has requested the utilities to post copies of their Schedule of Charges for Services Rendered in front of their offices. This directive has been duly complied with and charges were found posted in most offices of the utilities. The objective was to avoid arbitrariness in pricing, price discrimination and to protect consumers from marketing practices that were unfair or abusive in nature.

PURC's Bureau of Consumer Services has prepared a comparative analysis of non-tariff charges of the Volta River Authority (VRA-NED) and Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) Limited for the consideration of the Commission. The Commission is reviewing the recommendations made to ensure that there is some degree of standardization in the pricing of services rendered by the two sister utility companies. Standardization in pricing would reduce the disparity in the pricing of the same services by the VRA and ECG.

In response to some violations in disconnection procedures, the Commission has had to remind the utilities of their duty to comply with the provisions of L.I. 1651 on "Termination of Service".

Prepayment Metering

Although the Commission appreciates the reasons given by the utilities for broadening the coverage for prepaid meters beyond their pilot schemes, it however cautioned that adequate preparation and care must be applied in implementing the wider scheme. Important issues such as sensitization of customers to embrace the concept through sustained education, determination of appropriate incentives in the nature of tariff discounts for affected customers, as well as the establishment and operation of a transparent pricing mechanism had to be appropriately addressed. Moreover, the Energy Commission, in collaboration with the PURC is in the process of promulgating the Code of Practice and Standards of Performance Regulations, which would provide the desired framework for prepayment metering by electricity utilities companies.

Prepayment Metering - Monitoring

Over the years, the VRA-NED, ECG and GWCL have used the conventional credit metering and billing system in their revenue collection efforts. Measures such as termination of service of defaulters, use of bonded cashiers, private debt collection companies, threat of prosecution and raffles did not result in a significant reduction in the debtors' position of the utility service providers. Rather, the debtors' position of these companies worsened. Prepayment metering was seen as a better option for improving the cash flow position and reducing the level of debts owed to these companies by customers.

Between 1994 and 1995 ECG ran the prepayment programme on a pilot basis in Accra, Tema and Kumasi for residential and non-residential customers with small loads. Areas where the meters were installed were Adenta SSNIT flats and surrounding areas, Sakumono Estates, some communities in Tema, Asuoyeboah SSNIT flats, Kwadaso, Patase and Danyame areas of Kumasi.

 

Discussions held with the officials of ECG have confirmed prepayment metering as a cost-effective solution for:

• ·         Improving revenue collection
  
• ·         Creating awareness on the need for customers to conserve energy and reduce wastage
  
• ·         Reducing costs associated with meter reading, billing errors, bill production and delivery of bills.
  

Interactions between the officials of the Bureau of Consumer Services and prepaid customers revealed that a large number of prepaid customers did not want to change to alternative payment methods because of the help prepayment meters provided with budgeting. Avoidance of billing errors, delay in bill delivery and crediting payments were some of the reasons cited for patronizing prepayments meters. Most customers who voluntarily opted for prepayment meters were satisfied with the service provided.

However, some of the prepaid customers suspected it was more expensive using the service from the prepayment meters than the conventional metering system. Most of these complainants were non-residential customers like hoteliers and furniture companies. There were also complaints about discrimination in the imposition of prepayment meters on customers. Some customers argued that prompt paying customers should be given the freedom to choose whatever metering system they wanted.

In the year 2002, the Bureau of Consumer Services would propose to management to appoint an independent agency to investigate the accuracy and the degree of conformity of the prepayment meters to the PURC approved tariffs. Based on the findings of the investigation appropriate recommendations would be made to the Commission.

GWCL and VRA-NED have started the prepayment metering system on a pilot basis.

 

Consumer Protection & Advocacy

In our interactions with the utility service providers, the BCS advocated the following changes in delivering improvements in the following specific areas:

·         Making it easier for customers who want to pay by cash or cheque.

·         Providing better information and services for prepayment meter customers.

·         Improved communications with customers in debt and an obligation to take into account the customers' ability to pay when negotiating debt payments.

·         Providing more energy efficiency advice, in particular for customers on low incomes or those with payment difficulties.

·         Improved provision of services and adhering to regulations on special protection for vulnerable customers such as the elderly, chronically ill or disabled.

The following measures that would improve customer service were advocated:

• ·         Prompt response to billing errors.
  
• ·         Prompt response to complaints, faults and leaks.
  
• ·         Ensuring metered customers' bills were based on meter readings and ease of telephone contact.
  

Customer Charters

To enable the PURC to perform some of its statutory obligations of monitoring utility service standards in Ghana, the Commission has requested each of the utility companies to prepare a comprehensive Customer Charter. The Customer Charters will set out the standards of service that customers should expect from the service providers. They will also spell out the obligations and responsibilities of consumers. It is envisaged that Ghana Water Company's (GWC) charter, which is currently going through a review process, will be finalized soon. The ECG and VRA have engaged consultants to assist them draw up performance standards for both technical and customer service areas.

 

Public Education (Public Relations)

During the year under review, the Commission, in its efforts to educate consumers and the general public on PURC's functions and activities, produced two consumer brochures that outline in simple language the contents of the two Legislative Instruments so far issued by the Commission. These are the Public Utilities (Termination of Service Regulations) 1999 L.I 1651, and the Public Utilities (Complaints Procedure Regulations) 2000 L.I. 1665.

The Commission was also represented on a number of radio programmes and participated in phone-in public education programme on various radio stations. PURC officials responded positively to the numerous enquiries from the media, the public and organizations and welcomes the opportunities offered by the media to discuss the Commission's work and some of the challenges of utility regulation.

Regional Offices

Pursuant to the plan of action on the establishment of regional offices mentioned in the 1999 Annual Report, the Commission during the year opened its first regional office in Kumasi. Preparations are being made towards opening a second regional office in Tamale.

Utilities' Quality of Service

One of the Commission's most important tasks, as far as consumers are concerned, is to develop and operate a regulatory framework that requires the utilities to provide to the public, service that is safe, adequate, reliable, and efficient and also at reasonable cost and on a non-discriminatory basis. To that end, the Commission's Bureau of Consumer Services was instituted in the Secretariat with the primary responsibility of monitoring the performance of the utility companies in the delivery of good quality of service to meet consumer expectations.

Some of the functions of the Bureau are to:

• ·         Provide responsive, efficient and accountable management of consumer complaints
  
• ·         Protect the right of Consumers with regard to quality of services
  
• ·         Advise consumers of their rights; responsibilities as well as educating the public to enable consumers make informed choices in respect of their services.
  

http://www.purc.com.gh/consumer_info.php