Institutional Framework for Consumers Protection in Nigeria

This study examined the framework institutionalised for the protection of consumers in Nigeria. In particular, it x-rayed the administrative and regulatory mechanisms put in place for the protection of consumers and considered the attitude of the courts in matters affecting the consumers. It was evidenced from the study that there are several regulatory agencies, with functions sometimes overlapping, set up to advance the consumer's course. The effectiveness of these agencies is brought into scrutiny, as sometimes, their existence is hardly known to the consumers. The study exposed a general lacklustre approach of the courts in consumer protection cases and its adverse effect on the consumers. If the consumer is to take benefit of whatever legal framework institutionalised for his protection in Nigeria, some level of judicial activism are required.