Synopsis: Competition advocacy is a complimentary approach to competition enforcement, serving as the primary avenue for cultivating a culture of healthy competition. Within the realm of advocacy, competition agencies can engage in diverse activities, including conducting studies, fostering communication with government agencies, organizing awareness-raising initiatives, educating stakeholders about the agency's significance and mission, explaining competition laws and other outreach activities.
This session will delve into the initiatives and advocacy efforts aimed at fostering a robust culture of competition in the Arab world. Discussions will include exploring the strategies and challenges towards advancing the promotion of competition in the region, with particular attention to addressing the challenges faced by young and small competition authorities. The panellists will bring international, regional, and national perspectives and examples to the discussion.

Synopsis: The coordination and collaboration among Arab Competition authorities encourages a framework that promotes fair business practices, prevents anti-competitive behaviour, and fosters economic efficiency, particularly considering cross-border transactions operated by companies. Insights for the discussion will stem from the latest ESCWA publication, “The Arab Business Legislative Frameworks”, which devotes a full chapter for assessing competition legislation in the region, along with country profiles for each Arab country. Experts will likely address issues such as cross-border competition concerns, the impact on regional economic integration and the role of harmonized legislation in adopting common competition principles, creating a level playing field for businesses across the region, and facilitating the cooperation between competition authorities. The session will touch upon the collaborative efforts needed among Arab countries to address these concerns.

The economic and political landscape in which competition law is enforced and applied has undergone significant transformations over the past decade. The forces of globalization and a revitalized emphasis on industrial policy have spurred demands for a more adaptable and responsive approach to competition policy, particularly for many Arab countries who are undergoing structural economic reforms. The session will address the challenges that competition authorities, particularly recently established ones, face in the interplay between competition and industrial policies and the possible solutions to these challenges. It will also discuss how can the interaction frameworks and mechanisms between competition authorities and industrial policymakers be improved, in addition to the role that competition authorities can play for Governments to better deal with recent economic changes. The session will extend to include the crucial aspect of competitive neutrality, examining its role in fostering fair competition within evolving economic landscapes.

Synopsis: Significant market distortions may arise when some enterprises benefit from undue competitive advantages conferred by state actions, for example on the basis of their ownership, nationality or their activity in the market. These distortions can prevent competition from reaching its potential for economic growth, productivity and innovation. They may discourage investment, create regulatory uncertainty, and encourage other jurisdictions to adopt similar distortions that undermine a global level playing field. Competition authorities have a role to play in promoting the application of competitive neutrality principles, including addressing distortions through their enforcement tools, and advocating for neutrality in state actions ranging from subsidies to procurement.
This session will introduce the concept of competitive neutrality and explore how authorities in the region and beyond have promoted competitive neutrality to help governments develop resilience in key markets.