The Legal and Institutional Framework for Consumer Protection in Ethiopia
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Date
2011-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The legal protection for consumers from abuse by market actors has passed
several stages of development. The earliest protection was based on laws of
contract and extra contractual liability. But these private law mechanisms have
not been adequate enough in protecting consumers’ interests. Due to this, later
on, consumer protection began to be based on criminal law, competition law and
regulatory laws of different nature, as well. However, still, the protections based
on these laws have their own limitations. To supplement the limitations of these
private and public laws in consumer protection, countries began to enact a
separate consumer protection regime.
Ethiopia enacted a Trade Practice and Consumer Protection Law in 2010 with
the same objectives of protecting consumers in the market place. The legal
regimes of this law include the scope of application of the law which applies to
any transaction in goods and services. Beside this, the rights of consumers and
obligations of business persons are basic substantive characteristics of this law.
Turning to its institutional framework, the Trade Practice and Consumer
Protection Authority is established to adjudicate cases on the violations of the
law. The Ministry of Trade shall investigate violations of the law and bring cases
for adjudication before the Authority. At regional level, Regional Consumer
Protection Organs and Regional Trade Bureaus have the role of the Authority
and the Ministry respectively. The law also recognizes the role of federal and
regional courts in the enforcement of the law. Beside these bodies recognized by
the Trade Practice and Consumer Protection Law, Organs for National Quality
Infrastructure and the Food, Medicine and Health Care Administration and
Control Authority are the main regulatory bodies that have direct role in
consumer protection.
It is important to note the effect of this newly enacted law on regulatory bodies in
general and on basic laws of contract and extra contractual liability, as well. The
law, based on whether it is properly implemented or not, would certainly have its
own positive and negative effects on business persons, and on the over all
protection of consumers.
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Keywords
legal protection for consumers from abuse by market, actors has passed several stages of development.