A new culture of protecting consumer rights is now building in Egypt, Sherine Nasr reports Egyptian consumers are becoming increasingly aware of their rights. The hotline 19588 now rings far more frequently, receiving complaints by the once helpless consumers. Complaints are filed on all kinds of grounds, from product defects to a company or retailer failing to meet consumer expectations. Nevertheless, complaints remain futile unless a consumer has a receipt for purchased merchandise. In many other countries, this might be normal practice. In Egypt, however, receipts could not be more alien to both the consumer and the retailer alike. "Retailers have always avoided giving out receipts on sold commodities. And consumers never asked for them. This has been the case for decades now and it will not change overnight," said Amr Fahim, executive director of the Consumer Protection Agency (CPA), on the occasion of the International Consumer Rights Day on 15 March. According to Said El-Alfi, chairman of CPA, consumers must have a receipt to be able to claim their rights . "Unless failure to issue a receipt becomes penalised by law, there is little that can be done to regulate the Egyptian market effectively," El-Alfi said. As a matter of fact, for decades and until a few years ago, consumers barely had any rights at all. Sold product were neither returned nor exchanged, as a norm, in the Egyptian market. In time, the unwritten slogan became a hard-hitting reality. Written in bold and hung up so that no consumer could possibly miss it, the reminder was practically the first thing a would-be shopper would see. However, with the implementation of a consumer protection law in May 2006, many consumer-retailer concepts are slowly changing. A new trend, manifesting itself in the form of filing complaints, demanding receipts, and asking for more consumer rights, is slowly but surely materialising. Proof of this is the fact that, according to El-Alfi, the CPA has received at least 11,000 complaints from the start of 2009 until March, compared to some 7,450 complaints during the whole of 2008. "This is an indication of growing awareness among the people of their rights and the official means through which they can claim these rights," said El-Alfi, who added that at least 92 per cent of those complaints could be solved immediately while the rest were referred to the court, to take the necessary action. The bulk of complaints received by the CPA -- almost 65 per cent -- had to do with electric appliances as they are comparatively more expensive, while 11 per cent were about vehicles and spare parts. A further 11 per cent were about inadequate after-sale service. Significantly, the relationship between consumers and producers has recently started to change, tipping the balance further in favour of the consumer. For example, transportation fees of a product sent to a factory for maintenance are now borne by the factory, not the consumer, as was the case before. Moreover, a consumer has the right to receive a brand new item in case of damage occurring during the guarantee period. Last but not least, the certificate of guarantee which was once optional is now indispensable in any purchasing operation. "These rights and others were all new to the Egyptian consumer, who has long been used to getting whatever he was being offered," said Mohamed Elwan, legal counsellor to CPA, who added that consumer safety and health are now top priorities. But building up a new legacy of consumer rights is not an easy task to perform. In a country where the government has for decades been the only producer, distributor and supplier of almost all commodities, it becomes hard to conceive of any consumer rights at all. This is why, before the inception of CPA in 2006, it has merely been the task of non-profit consumer right protection organisations scattered around the country to address both consumers and manufacturers. Nevertheless, little could be done, given the lack of coordination among these entities and the absence of the legal means to press charges against violators. Now, things are different. "The consumer protection law has empowered the consumer with the necessary legal tool to operate," said Elwan. On the regional front, Egypt has been the first Middle East and African country to become member of the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN), a membership-based organisation consisting of the trade practices law enforcement authorities of more than 36 countries, most of which are members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). "These agencies aim for top-level standards in protecting consumer rights. We get updated with the latest news and we exchange ideas and data with them on various issues," said El-Alfi. Other measures have been taken to adjust the Egyptian market in consumers' favour. A major step in the right direction was taken a few weeks ago when the General Authority of Export and Import in Egypt signed a memorandum of understanding with its Chinese counterpart to prevent informal Chinese products from entering the Egyptian market. According to Mohamed El-Banna, head of the Egyptian Export/ Import Supervisory Authority, Egyptian importers wishing to purchase Chinese commodities are now required to approach the counterpart Chinese agency for a certificate of inspection. "The Chinese agency will issue a certificate only if the specifications of the product comply with the Egyptian standards for that product," said El-Banna, adding that this step will hopefully eradicate a flow of cheap yet value-stripped, low-quality Chinese products that have invaded the Egyptian market recently. In the meantime, 10 top Egyptian manufacturers have joined the Customer Satisfaction Guarantee Initiative which includes a modification of the certificate of guarantee so as to be more time-specific and more loyal to Egyptian standards. "More manufacturers will soon follow suit, to help guarantee customer satisfaction," said El-Alfi.
