By JUDITH NAMUTOWE –
THE African Consumer Union (ACU) has called on African governments to protect their economies from a surge of sub-standard products.
ACU vice-president Muyunda Ililonga said the union had observed that the high proliferation of sub-standard and counterfeit products, mainly from the far-east, pose the biggest threat to manufacturing in Africa.

. Ililonga

Mr Ililonga said that there was need for African governments to ensure their economies were protected and should not allow international trade to weaken the continent’s manufacturing capabilities.
He said this was leading to the continent’s high levels of unemployment and backwardness.
Mr Ililonga also noted that trade relations between Africa and China, characterised by the latter’s over supply of lowly-priced consumer and sub-standard goods, was costing the African continent colossal sums of money.
He said this was so because consumers were pushed in a cycle of poverty by purchasing goods repeatedly without expected value in return.
“The African continent, without exception, is awash with sub-standard counterfeit consumer goods coming from the far-east.
“These lowly-priced goods look attractive to the poor consumer on the continent but in fact the African consumer hardly gets value for his little money because soon these products fail to perform and retain value and the consumer is left bitter with holes in his pockets,” Mr Ililonga said.
He said that the result was a circle of poverty induced, in part, by imbalance in trade relations.
“It’s for this reason that  we call upon the governments on the continent to rise to the occasion and ensure protection of its markets and citizens from unfair trade relations that make the continent a dumping ground for unpleasant commerce,” he said.