{"id":11738,"date":"2026-01-08T11:19:02","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T11:19:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=11738"},"modified":"2026-01-08T11:19:05","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T11:19:05","slug":"back-to-school-consumer-alert-zimbabwes-cpc-warns-against-unfair-school-practices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=11738","title":{"rendered":"Back-to-School Consumer Alert: Zimbabwe&#8217;s CPC Warns Against Unfair School Practices"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>By Dennis Ndlovu I Zim GBC News<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Consumer Protection Commission (CPC) in Zimbabwe has issued a stern warning to schools engaging in illegal practices ahead of the new academic term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The commission highlighted reports of schools forcing parents to purchase uniforms and materials from designated outlets at inflated prices, an act that violates consumer rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These actions have been classified as unfair trade practices, directly contravening the Consumer Protection Act. The commission emphasized that,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Every consumer has a right to choose goods or services of their preferred choice without any undue influence or pressure from suppliers of goods or services&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The CPC is urging parents and guardians to remain vigilant and exercise their fundamental rights during their back-to-school shopping. Consumers are advised not to be coerced into purchasing unwanted or unaffordable goods or services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Schools are not permitted to mandate parents or guardians to purchase uniforms, stationery, or other school requirements from specific suppliers,&#8221; a statement from the CPC clarified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The commission maintains that parents are free to select suppliers based on their preferences, budgets, and convenience, provided the items meet the general specifications set by the school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Consumers who encounter such unfair practices, misleading information, or coercion are encouraged to report these matters to the Consumer Protection Commission through its offices or official communication platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The CPC remains committed to safeguarding consumer rights and promoting a fair marketplace, particularly during high-demand periods like the back-to-school season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>FOLLOW US FOR REAL-TIME UPDATES:<br>\u00b7 X (Twitter): @ZimGbc<br>\u00b7 Instagram: @ZimGBCNews<br>\u00b7 TikTok: @ZimGBCNews_01<br>\u00b7 Facebook: Zim GBC News<br>\u00b7 YouTube: Zim GBC News<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Get real-time alerts on WhatsApp:<br>+263 773 820 323<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Zim GBC News | Global News From An African Perspective\u00a92026<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Dennis Ndlovu I Zim GBC News The Consumer Protection Commission (CPC) in Zimbabwe has issued a stern warning to schools engaging in illegal practices ahead of the new academic&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11739,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[115],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-education"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11738"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11738\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11740,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11738\/revisions\/11740"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}