Copenhagen, May 18, 2010. The Consumer Partnership-Ghana- Proceedings of the 8th Plenary of the evolving International Guidance Standard on Social Responsibility (SR), ISO 26000, opened on Monday 15th May in Copenhagen with Ghana represented by Jean Lukaz, a consumer representative from The Consumer Partnership-Ghana. Ghana’s participation was facilitated by the Ghana Standards Board (GSB), which is the official representative of Ghana at the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and ISO.
In January 2005, a Working Group was established within ISO, to develop an International Standard providing guidelines for Social Responsibility (SR). The objective was to produce a guidance document, written in plain language that is understandable and usable by non-specialists, and not a specification document intended for third party certification.
Relating the ISO 26000 guidance standard to the Ghana Business code Mr Lukaz commented that ISO 26000 covers more ground including consumer issues than the Ghana Business code, which is based in its entirety on the UN Global Compact.
Social responsibility has been dealt with extensively in the document to cover the seven core subjects of organizational governance, human rights, labour practices, the environment, fair operating practices, consumer issues, and community involvement and development.
Speaking on the relevance of the development of the guidance standard on SR, Jean Lukaz said, ‘the final document is intended to add value to, and not replace, existing inter-governmental agreements with relevance to social responsibility, such as the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and those adopted by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and that the standard should be usable for organizations of all sizes, in countries at every stage of development.’
He added that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has grown beyond traditional corporate philanthropy and sponsorships, and that it is about time industry in Ghana developed a strategic and integrated approach to CSR. Mr Lukaz emphasized that it would be more relevant for Ghana Club 100 to be using reporting on [C]SR in company annual reports as a criteria for selection.
At GSB a National Mirror Committee was formed comprising 6 key stakeholders from industry, government, labour, consumers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and service, support, research and others (SSRO) as required by ISO.
According to Jean Lukaz, Ghana’s participation in the final stage of the development of the guidance standard on Social Responsibility demonstrates the country’s commitment to creating an enabling business environment where not only the businesses are required to act responsibly but also consumers, communities, labour, civil society and government.
ISO 26000 will provide harmonized, globally relevant guidance based on international consensus among expert representatives of the main stakeholder groups and so encourage the implementation of social responsibility worldwide. The guidance in ISO 26000 draws on best practice developed by existing public and private sector SR initiatives and is intended to be useful to organizations large and small in both these sectors.
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.blogspot.com
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.wordpress.com
www.theconsumerpartnership.wordpress.com
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Alata Samina: Soap or Drug?
By Jean Lukaz MIH
Reviews of certain local products by the Consumer Partnership (The COP) on the Ghanaian markets reveal a certain level of uncertainty regarding their classifications. This is particularly the case of plant-based products that are sometimes erroneously referred to as herbal products but actually have no herbal basis for that description after they lose their herbal properties after being processed. It is even more complicated when the labelling of such products contain claims as to their potency in treating certain medical conditions.
Alata samina has been the worst offender so far with many that have been exported to the US rejected and returned on the basis that Alata Samina is a drug and not soap based on the claims on the labels, and therefore the need to certify them in Ghana as drugs.
Even some of the ‘improved’ versions of Alata Samina have the pharmaceutical plus sign on the labels and many are questionning to what extent some of these claims can be considered deceptive, given the local acceptance of Alata Samina as having medicinal properties.
Expert opinion from the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) indicate that Alata Samina can neither be referred to as ‘Herbal Soap’ as the initial herbal ingredients lose their herbal properties after the processing and the final product is just ordinary local soap that can neither be considered medicinal by technical standards, otherwise it has to be proven so and certified as a drug by the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) too.
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.blogspot.com
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.wordpress.com
www.theconsumerpartnership.wordpress.com
Reviews of certain local products by the Consumer Partnership (The COP) on the Ghanaian markets reveal a certain level of uncertainty regarding their classifications. This is particularly the case of plant-based products that are sometimes erroneously referred to as herbal products but actually have no herbal basis for that description after they lose their herbal properties after being processed. It is even more complicated when the labelling of such products contain claims as to their potency in treating certain medical conditions.
Alata samina has been the worst offender so far with many that have been exported to the US rejected and returned on the basis that Alata Samina is a drug and not soap based on the claims on the labels, and therefore the need to certify them in Ghana as drugs.
Even some of the ‘improved’ versions of Alata Samina have the pharmaceutical plus sign on the labels and many are questionning to what extent some of these claims can be considered deceptive, given the local acceptance of Alata Samina as having medicinal properties.
Expert opinion from the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) indicate that Alata Samina can neither be referred to as ‘Herbal Soap’ as the initial herbal ingredients lose their herbal properties after the processing and the final product is just ordinary local soap that can neither be considered medicinal by technical standards, otherwise it has to be proven so and certified as a drug by the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) too.
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.blogspot.com
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.wordpress.com
www.theconsumerpartnership.wordpress.com
Black Plastic, the Devil and Consumer Issues
By Jean Lukaz MIH
At a recent consumer meeting of The Consumer Partnership (The COP), issues were raised concerning the colour black being used in the production of plastic bags, bowls, buckets, etc and their implications as to the quality of the materials used and also issues not necessarilly technical but regarding the spiritual connotations of the colour black. It must be noted that black plastics are usually the product of recycled waste and by implication all black plasticware must not be used for food storage, food production, food transfer or food consumption.
Black plastic bags in Ghana are usually referred to as “Ewiase ye sum” meaning ‘It’s a dark world’ and connoting all that is concealed by the colour black and by implication inside the bag.
Technically, test reports from the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) indicate that the testing laboratory automatically does not check for the quality of black platic bags, black plastic bowls, black plastic buckets and black plastic waste bins [now being used by Ghanaian consumers to store water] in relation to their use for food for human consumption unless the description of the product categorically indicates that they are going to be used for food storage, food preparation, food transfer or food consumption purposes. This is because they are by default not meant to be used for food purposes.
What then happens to consumer misuse as is the prevalent situation in Ghana? You guess!
Black plastic cutlery and plates have been discovered in some of the so called high class stores such as Koala at Osu and even National Security has picked up on the emerging issue of the Black Plastic Menace in Ghana made in China and Ghana being sold in these shops. It is even worse in the open marketplaces where the majority of illiterate and ignorant Ghanaian consumers patronise these products to the risk of their health and safety.
Some factories in the Accra industrial area are being reported to be recycling plastic from e-waste, car batteries and other toxic components in the manufacture of these black plastic cutlery, plates, bowls, buckets and bins/water containers and concealing the pigmentation with black dyes.
Expert opinion from the GSB also refers to the use of other colours apart from black in dyeing toxic recycled plastics. The dangers are worse when hot food is kept in these placticware as it catalyses the migration of toxins from the plasticware into the food that has the likelihood of causing cancer.
…And what has black plasticware got to do with the devil? You decide!
Are we safe?
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.blogspot.com
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.wordpress.com
www.theconsumerpartnership.wordpress.com
At a recent consumer meeting of The Consumer Partnership (The COP), issues were raised concerning the colour black being used in the production of plastic bags, bowls, buckets, etc and their implications as to the quality of the materials used and also issues not necessarilly technical but regarding the spiritual connotations of the colour black. It must be noted that black plastics are usually the product of recycled waste and by implication all black plasticware must not be used for food storage, food production, food transfer or food consumption.
Black plastic bags in Ghana are usually referred to as “Ewiase ye sum” meaning ‘It’s a dark world’ and connoting all that is concealed by the colour black and by implication inside the bag.
Technically, test reports from the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) indicate that the testing laboratory automatically does not check for the quality of black platic bags, black plastic bowls, black plastic buckets and black plastic waste bins [now being used by Ghanaian consumers to store water] in relation to their use for food for human consumption unless the description of the product categorically indicates that they are going to be used for food storage, food preparation, food transfer or food consumption purposes. This is because they are by default not meant to be used for food purposes.
What then happens to consumer misuse as is the prevalent situation in Ghana? You guess!
Black plastic cutlery and plates have been discovered in some of the so called high class stores such as Koala at Osu and even National Security has picked up on the emerging issue of the Black Plastic Menace in Ghana made in China and Ghana being sold in these shops. It is even worse in the open marketplaces where the majority of illiterate and ignorant Ghanaian consumers patronise these products to the risk of their health and safety.
Some factories in the Accra industrial area are being reported to be recycling plastic from e-waste, car batteries and other toxic components in the manufacture of these black plastic cutlery, plates, bowls, buckets and bins/water containers and concealing the pigmentation with black dyes.
Expert opinion from the GSB also refers to the use of other colours apart from black in dyeing toxic recycled plastics. The dangers are worse when hot food is kept in these placticware as it catalyses the migration of toxins from the plasticware into the food that has the likelihood of causing cancer.
…And what has black plasticware got to do with the devil? You decide!
Are we safe?
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.blogspot.com
www.ghanaconsumerwatch.wordpress.com
www.theconsumerpartnership.wordpress.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Download your own copy of 
Posts
