Press Information Bureau

Government of India

Ministry of Corporate Affairs

20-January-2012 13:32 IST

Competition Advocacy is a Critical Function of Competition Agencies- Ashok Chawla, Chairman CCI

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) Chairman Shri Ashok Chawla has pointed out that competition advocacy is a critical function of competition agencies as it has a very important role to play in creating ‘competition culture’ in the economies. Addressing a one day long an international workshop organised yesterday in collaboration with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on the theme “Advocating for Competition in Policies and in Practice” here Shri Chawla said continuous engagement with the various stakeholders including the government, at various levels, using tools such as policy advice, education, market studies, and competition impact assessment are imperative towards achieving the objective of competition law and policy.

The one day workshop was attended by by representatives of six competition agencies from UK, Australia, Japan, Korea, Indonesia and Mauritius apart from representatives of OECD, Planning Commission, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Members and officers of CCI. Multilateral issues relating to regulatory reforms and competition, governmental advocacy etc were deliberated in the workshop. Since the representatives of matured and young competition agencies participated in the workshop, it was a very fruitful and meaningful interaction which will immensely benefit young agencies like India, Indonesia and Mauritius in creating a strong competition environment in their respective economies. There was complete agreement amongst the representatives from different jurisdictions that a competition advocacy and enforcement are reinforcing activities and they must go hand in hand.

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Competition advocacy drives regulatory engagement and policy reform, promoting market studies, stakeholder education and impact assessment. Competition advocacy is a central regulatory function requiring continuous engagement with government and market stakeholders using policy advice, education, market studies, and competition impact assessment; advocacy and enforcement are complementary and mutually reinforcing in advancing competition law and policy.