BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:unctad.org
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:6a83eb25c8bc2
DTSTART:20231102T130000Z
SEQUENCE:0
TRANSP:OPAQUE
DTEND:20231102T210000Z
LOCATION:Santo Domingo\, Dominican Republic
SUMMARY:Thirteenth COMPAL International Consumer Protection Forum for Latin
  America
CLASS:PUBLIC
DESCRIPTION:\n\nSince 2011\, UNCTAD&#039\;s COMPAL Programme has been hosti
 ng the annual International Consumer Protection Forum\, which has grown to
  be the major public forum on consumer protection issues in Latin America 
 with over 300 participants.\n\nIt aims to provide a space for policy maker
 s and other relevant stakeholders such as businesses\, consumer associatio
 ns\, academia\, practitioners\, and the public at large to exchange views 
 on current and future challenges and trends to the welfare of consumers.\n
 \nThe thirteenth edition of the International Consumer Protection Forum wi
 ll be devoted to digital and financial issues through three sessions and w
 ill be held in Spanish only.\n\nAccording to recent UNCTAD research\, disp
 ute resolution is a driver of consumer trust in markets\, especially digit
 al markets. Latin America hosts some sophisticated mechanisms for online d
 ispute resolution for consumers\, although their interoperability across b
 orders remains a challenge.\n\nThe first session will share ongoing govern
 ment initiatives at the Latin American level. One of the objectives of the
  United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection is to facilitate the de
 velopment of independent consumer groups.\n\nConsumer associations play an
  essential role voicing consumers’ interest in policymaking\, informing 
 and educating consumers\, defending consumer rights\, and monitoring marke
 ts.\n\nAccording to an UNCTAD publication\, issues of governance\, human r
 esources\, professionalization\, and funding are key to strengthening cons
 umer associations.\n\nThe second session will discuss ways to strengthen c
 onsumer associations in Ibero-America. UNCTAD’s World Consumer Protectio
 n Map shows that cross-border cooperation in consumer protection in Latin 
 America is one of the most advanced in the world. However\, according to U
 NCTAD’s research\, such cooperation often takes the form of informal agr
 eements among agencies\, which poses challenges in the areas of e-commerce
 \, product safety\, and dispute resolution.\n\nThe third and last session 
 will identify the necessary improvements needed in regional cooperation to
  face current and future challenges in Latin America.\n\nPast editions of 
 the COMPAL International Forum on Consumer Protection were hosted in Guaya
 quil\, Lima\, Santo Domingo\, Bogotá\, Cuzco\, Guanacaste\, Mendoza\, Gua
 dalajara\, El Salvador\, Lisbon\, Asunción and Buenos Aires.\n\n \n\n\n\
 n\nhttps://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/ser-rp-2020d13_en.pdf
 \n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org/meeting/thirteenth-comp
 al-international-consumer-protection-forum-latin-america
DTSTAMP:20260818T051829Z
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