Bulawayo, (New Ziana) – Consumer protection is about more than just policing markets, it is about empowering citizens, strengthening business ethics, and fostering a culture of responsibility to ensure all Zimbabweans can buy goods and services with confidence, a senior government official has said.
Director for Commerce and Consumer Affairs in the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Netai Magade said this on Thursday while addressing delegates attending the inaugural two-day Consumer Conference here.
The conference is running under the theme, “Combating Proliferation of Counterfeit Products for Enhanced Industry Competitiveness and Consumer Safety for the Realisation of Vision 2030.
It brought together captains of industry, consumer advocates, regulatory authorities, government officials, academia, researchers, local authorities, and businesses to discuss ways to improve consumer rights and tackle the proliferation of counterfeits in the country.
In recent years, Zimbabwe has witnessed a surge in counterfeit goods, driven by porous borders and consumer demand for cheap products.
This has forced the government to escalate its efforts through a multi-pronged approach involving reinforced legislation, increased enforcement, and public awareness campaigns.
“Consumer protection is not only about policing markets. It is about empowering citizens, strengthening business ethics, and fostering a culture of responsibility among all economic players.
“It is about ensuring that every Zimbabwean, whether in Bulawayo, Mutare, Gweru or Harare, can buy goods and services with confidence, knowing that their health, safety and economic interests are protected,” she said.
The director highlighted that the problem of counterfeits is a global challenge from which Zimbabwe is not spared, adding that it undermines legitimate trade, distorts markets, and threatens consumer safety.
“We acknowledge that the problem of counterfeit products is not a challenge to Zimbabwe alone but has become a growing global challenge that undermines fair trade, distorts markets, and threatens the safety and well-being of consumers.
“It is against this background that the Ministry urges all stakeholders at this conference to put their heads together and dissect the topic, so we can develop concrete measures at both the policy and implementation levels to deal decisively with this menace,” she said.
Magade also noted that the Ministry, as the chair of a cabinet-mandated task force on business malpractices, has been coordinating all government agencies under a “whole of government” approach to restore sanity to the marketplace.
“I urge you all to actively participate in this conference to make it robust and productive, so we can develop strategies to deal with this menace which is threatening our industry and the realisation of our industrialisation policy goals,” she said.
Currently, Magade said, the Ministry was finalising a consumer protection policy to complement the existing Consumer Protection Act, creating a comprehensive framework within the consumer protection sphere.
“As the Ministry, we are alive to the challenges faced by consumers and our industry. It is against the continued short-changing of consumers that the Ministry spearheaded the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act to ensure a fair, efficient, sustainable and transparent marketplace,” she said.
The director also highlighted that the Ministry has also ensured consumer protection issues are included in the National Development Strategy 2 (NDS2), which is expected to be launched by the end of 2025.
“It is our hope that the targets set out in the national economic blueprint will be realised and will assist in achieving our national Vision to become a prosperous and upper middle-income society by 2030,” she said.
New Ziana
