World Consumer Rights Day is marked every year on March 15. The day is observed in order to raise awareness about consumer rights and promote consumer protection. It is an opportunity to highlight the importance of protecting consumers, promoting their rights, and ensuring that they have access to safe and affordable products and services.

World Consumer Rights Day was first observed on March 15, 1983, by Consumers International, a federation for consumer groups. The date was chosen to commemorate the historic speech given by US President John F. Kennedy in 1962 to the US Congress to uphold consumer rights.
In his speech, he outlined four basic consumer rights:

• The right to safety.
• The right to be informed.
• The right to choose
• The right to be heard
These were later adopted and expanded by the United Nations to create the United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection (UNGCP).

Significance

The day serves as a reminder that consumers have the right to be protected from unfair business practices and to have access to safe, quality goods and services. It also highlights the need for governments, businesses, and other stakeholders to work together to promote consumer rights and address consumer concerns.

In India, the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, guarantees six basic rights to consumers. The country marks National Consumer Day or National Consumer Rights Day on December 24 annually, to mark the day that the Consumer Protection Act of 1986 was signed into law by the president.

Theme

Each year, World Consumer Rights Day has a specific theme that focuses on a particular aspect of consumer protection. The theme for 2023 is ‘Empowering Consumers Through Clean Energy Transitions.’

The theme aims to focus on the role of consumers to push for a faster clean energy transition even as the energy crisis over the past year has pushed most of the world in a cost-of-living crisis. The various member groups of Consumers International as well as other partners will be holding events, programmes and campaigns with the year’s theme in focus.

Credit: CNBC TV