Joint Statement: Consumers International calls for COVID-19 response to focus on global consumer protection and empowerment
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis Consumers International members in 100 countries called for a focus on the protection and empowerment of individuals in the marketplace based on consumer rights, and for co-ordinated strategies across nations and intergovernmental bodies to build fair, safe, resilient and sustainable economies through consumer protection. Consumers International called on G20 member governments to support a global co-ordinated response to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis and to rebuild and renew our social, environmental and economic systems.
In future strategies to rebuild and renew, we want to see investment in the urgent shift to sustainable consumption and production driven by people's consumer rights in the marketplace with public investments that support critical social, environmental and economic systems and prioritise health, food, finance, connectivity, sustainability and consumer protection. Fair public investment: comprehensive national stimulus packages are being rolled out to mitigate the negative impacts of COVID-19 and ensure economic recovery. Such assistance and further longer term public investment in infrastructure and rebuilding should put public health and resilience needs first and be available to only corporations that are compliant with consumer protection regulations and committed to meeting the Paris Climate Goals and the Sustainable Development Goals. Finance should be prioritised in systems that consumers need the most, but which tend to attract the least investment such as sanitation and hygiene, household energy and efficiency retrofits, zero carbon mobility and last mile delivery systems. Prioritise sustainability: Consumers will play an important role in helping the world to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by the UN member states in 2015. SDG 12 refers specifically to consumers, but consumer behaviour will be important to many, if not all, the goals. Meeting the urgent need to rapidly transition to a clean, circular and sustainable economic model, particularly when supply chain shifts occur, will be impossible to achieve without the long term trust and engagement of consumers. The current crisis should not lead to the weakening of existing legislation to protect and promote sustainability, or the delay of urgently needed future initiatives in areas such as sustainable finance, food systems, mobility and household energy measures. Consumer protection frameworks can shape affordable, strong and sustainable food systems that meet the health and nutrition needs of consumers, building both individual health and resilience against future pandemic outbreaks, and protecting livelihoods and environmental resources. Developing a diverse mix of supply chains can also help resilience to future disruptions and maintain the livelihoods of a range of stakeholders including small farmers and small businesses.
