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Consumer Protection and Health Agencies redouble efforts to build an Inter American Rapid Alerts System on consumer product safety

On November 15 and 16, 2011, the Seminar on Damages Repair and Accountability for Defective Products was held in Bogota, Colombia, within the framework of the Consumer Safety and Health Network for the Americas (CSHN). The Seminar was organized by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC) of Colombia and the Department of Social Development and Employment of the Organization of American States (OAS) in partnership with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

The main objective of the Seminar was to advance the development of a common language to serve as a starting point for the design of an Inter-American Rapid Alerts System for consumer product safety (IARAS). Therefore, the Seminar sought to generate a space for exchange of experiences on new perspectives for the promotion and protection of consumer safety through effective systems of damages repair and accountability originated by defective products or services. The seminar was attended by more than twenty-five experts from Latin America and Europe, and over a hundred national guests. It also featured the participation of various Colombian authorities with expertise in the subject matter, as well as representatives of the OAS, PAHO, UNCTAD, the Catalan Consumer Agency, the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights, and the Getulio Vargas Foundation.

During the event, the authorities of the Government of Colombia also presented Law 1480, which establishes the new Consumer Statute in their country. Within this framework, the Vice President of the Republic of Colombia, Angelino Garzón, reaffirmed the commitment of his Government to the consolidation of the CSHN and reassured that efforts in Colombia will continue in order to lessen the visible injustices against the rights of citizens, particularly their right to life, health, life out of poverty and free from injustices, price speculation, and the right to education, among others. "I accepted to take part in the opening ceremony of this event to emphasize the commitment of Colombia to actively contribute to the consolidation of the CSHN" he highlighted.

At the closing ceremony, the Superintendent of Industry and Commerce, José Miguel De La Calle, highlighted the importance and urgency of standardizing and harmonizing different public policies among countries, as well as strengthening the CSHN and other similar initiatives. He also noted that "a movement is being conceived and we must seize this opportunity." For its part, the PAHO Regional Advisor on Workers and Consumers’ Health, Julietta Rodriguez-Guzman, concluded by noting that the seminar was inspiring and that, nowadays, we must understand consumption not only as a right but also as a social determinant of the quality of our life and health.

Finally, the Director of Social Development and Employment of the OAS, Evelyn Jacir de Lovo, congratulated the people of Colombia for their new law, praised the SIC for organizing the seminar, and emphasized the need for intersectoral and interagency coordination in terms of product safety at a national, regional and continental level. In that respect, she stated that without national progress such as the case of Colombia, it is not possible to achieve a Continental movement.

The CSHN is the first Inter-American effort to contribute to the integration and consolidation of national and regional market surveillance systems for consumer product safety, and it is the result of a commitment of the American States to efficiently protect the rights of consumers, as well as to promote safe consumption.

In the framework of the Seminar, on November 17 the CSHN Technical Advisory Group convened for the sixth time with the objective of debating about the progress made and next steps to be taken. Among the topics discussed during the meeting were the details of future capacity building and other activities to be carried within the framework of the CSHN, among which are the second graduate course, a specialized course for the Caribbean region and a workshop involving the private sector; as well as a proposal for the incorporation of civil society to the CSHN prepared by Consumers International and a health agencies’ articulation strategy developed by PAHO.

During the meeting, the participants also reviewed a summary of the last meeting in Buenos Aires in September 2011, spoke about the publication of a Safe Consumption and Health Atlas, and deepened the dialogue for developing a framework of action for the CSHN, with the final objective of achieving a common language for the development of the IARAS.

Following the success of the Seminar and in observance of the results obtained, the importance of continuing to disseminate the subject of Damages Repair for Defective Products and begin concrete and coordinated actions in this area were both highlighted.

More information: www.oas.org/rcss

Reference: E-971/11