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Boniface Makongo 

The United Nations Development Programme indicates that 1.3 billion tonnes of food goes to waste annually, while about two billion people go hungry or are undernourished. Ironically, another two billion people are overweight or obese.

Also, statistics estimate that up to 700 million people will be displaced by 2030 due to water scarcity, while 30 to 40 per cent of all food produced worldwide is lost or wasted, placing an unnecessary strain on the environment. 

Further, publications on science advances indicate that approximately over 8.3 billion metric tonnes of plastic waste had been generated to date.

Unfortunately, only nine per cent of the 6.3 billion metric tonnes of plastic waste has been recycled while 12 per cent has been incinerated.

The rest is located in landfills, dumpsites and the environment, with a significant amount washing up ashore, spit out by saturated oceans and seas after choking the marine life.

The verdict is in; to protect the planet and provide fair social conditions for current and future generations, we all need to interrogate the role we play in the production and consumption of goods and services, and its impact on the environment.

This challenge calls for a coordinated global action by consumers, a sustained approach by governments and consumer bodies to encourage sustainable consumption. 

And as we marked this year’s World Consumer Rights Day (WCRD) yesterday,  the focus was—as still is—on consumers’ role in the production and consumption of goods and services, and the attendant environmental impact. This year’s theme is ‘Sustainable Consumer.’

The WCRD, commemorated annually on March 15, aims to raise awareness about consumers’ rights, needs, and obligations and how to seek restitution in cases where those rights are infringed upon.

There is need for behavioural change among the business community to adopt sustainability models.

Other interventions should include interrogating the sustainability of the entire value chain by, for instance, ensuring that raw materials are safe and recyclable.

Recyclable and or reusable packaging is another way of addressing plastic waste. Our government led the way by banning the use of plastic carrier bags in 2017.

It further plans to ban single-use plastics in beaches, national parks, forests and conservation areas starting June.

On their part, manufacturers should aspire to produce goods built to last, especially electronics.  This will significantly lower the current rapid accumulation of e-waste.

The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) considers the WCRD 2020 as a key opportunity to sensitise and empower consumers to make sustainable choices which will contribute positively to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals.

The authority has conducted consumer campaigns in Migori, Kisumu and Kakamega counties. 

Our key message is the power of consumers in making purchase, use and disposal choices and their ability to influence the whole system by demanding more from supply chains and calling for more sustainable products and services.

Sustainable consumption will boost resource efficiency and fair trade while helping to alleviate poverty and enable everyone to enjoy good quality of life with access to food, water, energy, medicine and more.

Businesses also stand to gain as more discerning consumers agitate for sustainable products, the companies that are aligned to this stand to gain a competitive advantage over their rivals.  —[email protected]