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OAS AND PAHO JOIN EFFORTS TO PROMOTE CONSUMER HEALTH IN THE AMERICAS

At the Consultation Workshop on Consumers Health in the Americas, organized jointly by the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, asserted that the issue of consumer health and rights is “one of the most important tasks that we face today in the Americas, from the perspective of citizen rights.”

In this opportunity Insulza pointed out that the OAS General Assembly that took place in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, last June, asked the General Secretariat to “disseminate and boost efforts to provide legal protection and raise awareness of consumers’ rights by coordinating its activities with those of national consumer protection agencies and other organizations.”

In this sense, the OAS Secretary General expressed that from his point of view “there is a space to generate hemispheric-level coordination for the defense of consumers, which can be accomplished only if we consider the realities, the systems, the development levels and the specific legislation of each country, and which will allow us to work together to benefit consumers of the hemisphere.”

At the event, which took place at the OAS headquarters in Washington D.C., Dr. Socorro Gross, Assistant Director of PAHO, called for a “greater consciousness of the opportunities offered by the consumption of services related to public health, development and poverty reduction.” She affirmed that multilateral organizations should “stimulate more sustainable living standards and provide tools that facilitate the creation of public and private policies that foster quality of life, well-being, and preservation of the environment.”

“We know that in any effort related to consumption, education plays a crucial role; this is why we should promote consumer education, and provide the tools needed to comply with social responsibility principles,” affirmed the representative from PAHO.

On the other hand, the OAS Secretary for Legal Affairs, Jean Michel Arrighi, stated that the workshop “offers an opportunity for government authorities and representatives from academia and civil society to share their views.” He also urged workshop participants to create collaboration networks that “facilitate the exchange of information and experiences, and can contribute in the follow-up of initiatives formulated in the framework of the event.”

The two-day workshop was based on the discussions of issues such as policies and normative frameworks for the protection of consumer health, as well as on the current situation, challenges, and evaluation of best practices in this area. Workshop participants also commented on the importance of promoting the rights of consumers to get safe products and services, and the alternatives to develop a long-term plan of action that transforms consumption patterns, and that strengthen consumer health at the continental level.

Reference: E-292/09