An evaluation study of the use of consumer protection clubs to provide consumer education to children in School in Lusaka Province-The case of the competition and Consumer Protection Commission
Date
2015-10-26
Authors
Kubilwa, Richard Kubilwa
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Abstract
The purpose of the study was to establish the effectiveness of the use of the Competition and Consumer Protection Clubs as a tool to achieve Consumer Rights and Responsibilities
awareness among children in School in Lusaka Province. This research used the
questionnaire survey, in-depth interview and document analysis design. 60 club members consisting 28 females and 32 males in schools with clubs responded to self administered
questionnaires, 6 teachers-in-charge of the respective clubs and the school club program coordinator at the Commission took part in the in-depth interviews. The study used the SPSS
software to do the quantitative and the qualitative analysis of data.
The major objective of the Consumer Club Scheme is to educate the children about the Competition and Consumer Protection Act, consumer rights and Consumer responsibilities
and to impart the skills, attitudes, knowledge and understanding that will enable children in a
consumer society to make full use of the range of consumer opportunities present in a complex marketplace. Children are one of the important demographic segments of any
society or country; they not only determine the future trend of population but also mould the
future social, economic and political structure of the country. The overall analysis shows that there are only 30 Secondary schools (26.5 percent) out of 113
secondary schools in Lusaka Province which have established Competition and Consumer
Protection clubs. The survey has revealed that, most of the clubs have more or less become
dysfunctional. The survey has revealed that 61.6 percent of the respondents could not even
mention one consumer right while 61.7 percent could not name the statutory body established following the enactment of Act No. 24 0f 2010 that deals with consumer welfare. The
research revealed that only 26.7 percent of the total number of respondents said that they always insist on taking the cash memo, only 41.7 percent of all the respondents said that they
always look for standardized goods, and only 38.3 percent always read the nutritional labels
on the food and medicines. 68.3 percent indicated that they examine the expiry date of the food items and medicines when buying them,
The results imply that clubs have not been effective enough to impart knowledge and change attitudes of children in school. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission lacks adequate capacity to coordinate and guide the clubs. The programme needs to be reviewed.
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Keywords
Consumer education-Zambia , Consumer protection-Zambia