Government of Samoa

03/15/2024 | News release | Archived content

SPEECH BY HONOURABLE MINISTER, LEOTA LAKI LAMOSITELE SIO AT THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE, INDUSTRY AND LABOUR AWARENESS DAY & COMMEMORATION OF WORLD CONSUMER RIGHTS DAY

SALELOLOGA SAVAII, 15 MARCH 2024

Reverend Paulo Sepuloni,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am delighted to extend a warm welcome to all participants representing various organizations, school principals & teachers and students gathered here today for the Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Labour (Ministry) Awareness Day.

TALOFA LAVA

Today is a commemoration of two main events:

i) The showcasing of different services provided by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Labour

The Ministry's vision is to establish a conducive environment for business innovation and employment generation for all Samoans. This entails thriving businesses, sectors, and individuals. However, challenges and external factors sometimes impede the realization of this vision. Therefore, the Ministry places great emphasis on its ongoing Awareness

Programs, aiming to strengthen long-term partnerships with development partners, private sector organizations, sectors, and the community to ensure the feasibility of the roadmap to achieving that vision.

The Ministry-led initiatives and collaborative work is in support to our economy and the national vision of "Fostering social harmony, safety, and freedom for all"

MCIL's mission is "Fostering economic growth and prosperity in Samoa by promoting public private partnerships, and ensuring a fair trading platform for businesses and consumers". In which leads me to the second event of today and that is the commemoration of World Consumer Rights Day.

ii) World Consumer Rights Day

The World Consumer Rights Day is an annual event for celebration and solidarity within the international consumer movement.

Celebrating the day is a chance to demand that the rights of all consumers are respected and protected, and to protest against market abuses and social injustices, which undermine those rights. World Consumer Rights Day was inspired by President John F Kennedy, who sent a special message to the US Congress on 15th March 1962, in which he formally addressed the issue of consumer rights. The Consumer International (CI) first observed this day on 15 March 1983 and now uses the 15 March every year to commemorate thus mobilizing action on important issues and campaigns. This year is the 26th year since World Consumer Rights Day has celebrated in Samoa.

The Samoan Government in June 1998 enacted the Fair Trading Act, which aimed to protect the rights and interests of consumers and to establish standards of conduct for those engaged in trade in Samoa. These objectives have been further refined and bolstered in the current legislation, the Competition and Consumer Act of 2016.

In honor of this special day, the Ministry sets aside the universal theme "Fair and Responsible Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Consumers" but chooses to proceed raising commitment in engaging consumers and businesses to interact in a solid and competitive trading environment by conducting outreach programs.

Eight Consumer Rights include:

1. Right to satisfaction of basic needs

2. Right to safety

3. Right to information

4. Right to choose

5. Right to representation

6. Right to redress

7. Right to a healthy environment

8. Right to consumer education

It is our hope that by the conclusion of today's activities, all attendees will have a comprehensive understanding of the Ministry's services and its integral role within our community. We also eagerly anticipate receiving feedback for the improvement of our services.

I would like to acknowledge the presence of our esteemed development partners present today:

Mr. George Bamopoulos and Ms. Nahyun Kim from the British Standards Institution (BSI), as well as Ms. Vashti Maharaj and Ms. Hawah Koroma from the Commonwealth Connectivity Agenda (CCA). Your ongoing support is greatly appreciated as we strive to advance standards, national quality policy, and ecommerce in Samoa. I also wish to acknowledge the presence of officials from the Kiribati Ministry of Tourism, Commerce, Industry, and Cooperatives, who are visiting Samoa for a study visit, and our esteemed partner, Mr. Alipate Tavo from PACER Plus.

May your time in Samoa be enjoyable and productive. Thank you for your continued collaboration and dedication to our shared goals.

On that note, I wish you all a successful day.

I NOW DECLARE THIS AWARENESS OPENED.

[Link] March 19, 2024