Important stakeholders for promoting competition and consumer protection reforms

Ahmed Qadir, Office of International AffairsCompetition Commission of Pakistan

Competition and

Consumer Protection Consultati

ons10-14

August 2015,

Istanbul

Competition Agency

The institution, established by the competition law, tasked with enforcement

The decisive factor in establishment of competition culture

Expected roles Effective enforcement of competition law; communication with consumers/other stakeholders Activities aimed at promoting competition culture

and awareness undertake competition advocacy

Essentials for success Subject knowledge and skills, human and financial resources functional autonomy Good interface with complementary institutions

‘Key stakeholders’ for competition and consumer protection reforms

POLICYMAKERS,

CONSUMER PROTECTION AUTHORITY

CIVIL SOCIETY,

ACADEMIA,

SECTOR REGULATORS,

MEDIA

BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS,

LEGAL FRATERNITY, JUDICIARY, ETC.

Policymakers

Policies generally made at cabinet level and endorsed by parliament

Policy makers- government officials (ministers) who make policies together with the MPs

Expected Roles Lay out conducive policy and legal frameworks Release resources for functioning of institutions Monitoring and accountability

Essentials for success Appreciation of benefits from competition and

consumer protection reforms Capacity to implement policies

Getting the government and politicians involved

Why government?They make important decisions so necessary to ensure that CA’s views are duly considered

CA has a very important role to counter “vested interests” lobbying for their benefits

Why politicians?They make important decisions about CA resources

Engaging with government bodies

A CA must be able to show that competition provides significant benefits through greater choice, lower prices, better quality of goods and services.

Competition provides the incentive for firms to be more efficient and innovative (raise productivity across the economy)

Engaging with government bodies

CA must be able to show it is not a threat…

…it is on the same side……that’s its advice is based on sound analysis, clearly presented, with the focus on the consumer

Diplomacy, inter-personal skills, EQ, and persuasion help immensely

What’s the message to government bodies?

Some competitive effects to consider…

Does the (proposed) intervention affect the possibility of entry and exit in a market? e.g., granting exclusive rights to supply, limiting the number of suppliers, or significantly raising the costs for new firms entering the market

Does it affect the nature of competition between firms, either through direct restrictions or by reducing the incentives to compete?

Does it affect consumers? Can they exercise choice?

Monitoring developments in government policies

The Government GazetteMediaConsumersContacts in government bodies

Engaging with Parliament

Parliamentary committees need to be treated with utmost care. Do not appear superior or condescending!

Not all committee members will share your views

Don’t make promises that are difficult to keep

Don’t make any statement people will remember forever!

Consumer Protection Authority

Institution with legal backing for consumer welfare interest

Expected Roles Effective enforcement of consumer law; Establish linkages with other consumer movements Promotion general awareness about consumer

issues Advocacy with relevant Ministries

Essentials for success Subject knowledge and skills, human and financial resources functional autonomy Good interface with complementary institutions

Civil Society-Consumer Organisations

Refers to voluntary social organisations and institutions that advocate for rights of consumers

Expected Roles Watchdogs (eyes and ears) for competition and

consumer authorities Awareness generation on competition and consumer

issues Mobilising consumers voice on need for protection Advocacy and pressure on competition and

consumer protection reforms Essentials for success

understanding on competition and consumer issues; Structures and capacity for interaction with various

stakeholders Support from development partners Recognition by the relevant authorities

Academia

University and other research institutions Expected Roles

Policy research on competition and consumer policy issues

Training courses on competition and consumer issues for human resource improvement

Capacity building programmes for officials Essentials for success

Acceptance of competition and consumer issues into the curriculum

Knowledge of competition and consumer issues by researchers

Sector regulators

Regulatory authorities established by other sector specific legislation

Expected Roles Tell their respective sectors what to do Work with CA to promote competition in their

respective sectors Make decisions that have a bearing on competition Protect consumer interests in their sectors

Conditions Precedent Resources to carry the tasks Good legal framework Good interface with competition and consumer

authority

Sector regulators

There could, eventually, be quite a few of these in existence.

The important ones: banking & securities, telecom, energy, services such as hospitals and waste management.

What works well are regular meetings for liaison purposes and memoranda of agreement.

Business

Regulated entity hence has big role to play Expected Roles

Competing fairly and avoid consumer violations Being sources of information for competition and

consumer authority Business associations promoting understanding on

competition among members (firms) Associations are not conduits for anti-competitive

behaviour Conditions precedent

No regulatory capture Competitive neutrality Acceptance of competition reforms by (big)

businesses

Media

All avenues of communication with general public (print, electronic, social etc.)

Expected Roles Promote greater public awareness of issues Awareness on institutions and legal framework Hint on possible anticompetitive areas and

consumer violations Constructive criticism

Conditions precedent Availability of trained reporters Capacity building courses for media Willing contributors (articles, reports, etc.) Good interaction with institutions (press releases etc.)

Legal Fraternity

Legal practitioners (for business and competition agency) also carry a heavy burden

Expected Roles educate clients on compliance mechanisms Help judiciary establish case laws Ensure careful enforcement of laws by guarding

against carelessness Help identify loopholes in the administration system

Conditions precedent proper understanding of the provisions of the law,

and its overall goal Training programmes for the lawyers Quick justice delivery system

Judiciary

The buck stops at the judiciary, hence determines efficiency of system

Speed of judicial review, however, is a matter of concern in many countries

Expected roles Efficient disposal of related trials/cases Establish case laws

Essentials for success knowledge on the subjects Conducive platform for presiding cases (e.g. different

from common criminal cases)

Conclusions – what the CA can do

Stakeholders need to understand and adequately perform their specific roles.

Stakeholder needs training. Programmes on awareness of competition and

consumer issues and their benefits critical for success.

Stakeholders need to complement each other rather than step on each other’s toes.

Resource constraints major challenge; hence development partners are necessary.

Advocacy key to buy-in; important to establish a cadre of advocates through training programmes

Confidence, credibility, resources

The more the CA inspires the confidence of Ministers, MPs, government bodies, parliamentary committees, etc., the more credibility it creates.

Credibility can be leveraged for more resources to carry on with its important work.

Final Thoughts

An authority will ultimately be judged on its perceived VALUE to the economy

Important to demonstrate this value quickly

keeping focused on the ’main game’, i.e., key priority issues and avoiding easy but low[er] priority issues is essential.

Communicating about what one does is also important helps get support

Thank you very much