ISLAMABAD: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) while increasing the pace of enforcement has completed 28 enquiries, conducted 17 search inspections, passed 12 orders and imposed the highest ever penalty of around Rs 40 billion in the in one year.
The enforcement actions have been completed in important sectors such as sugar, milk, cooking oil, consumer goods, pharmaceutical, beverages, online trading, education, media, and paint industries.
However, in most of the cases, the CCP is facing the general difficulty in concluding proceedings due to the parties continuously seeking injunctive relief from Courts even at nascent stages of an enquiry, such as call for information and search and inspections.
The Chairperson Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) Rahat Kaunain Hassan while sharing the CCP’s performance with the participant of 23rd meeting of Competition Consultative Group (CCG) said that the Competition Appellate Tribunal is now functional, which shall aid in clearing the backlog of cases. She also informed that the CCP has started receiving the 3% of the fee and charges collected by specific regulators (PTA, SECP, NEPRA, OGRA and PEMRA).
The Chairperson also launched the study report on “Improving Economic Efficiency in Small-and-Medium Enterprises in Pakistan” prepared by CCP. The study reviews the SME Policy Framework in Pakistan and based on two surveys concerning demand side constraints and supply side issues in SMEs’ growth and challenges in SME financing, offers recommendations to the Government of Pakistan and other concerned entities focusing on competition aspects, i.e., to ensure a level-playing field for SMEs to compete, which shall lead to the growth of the SME sector.
She also gave briefing on study, “Competition and Trade Practices Regulation in the Era of E-Commerce, Big Tech and Data Sciences” which highlights possible competition concerns in the e-commerce/online platforms market, which may fall under Section 3 (abusive conduct by dominant platforms) and Section 10 (deceptive marketing practices) of the Competition Act, 2010, and analyzes regulation strategies in more developed countries across the globe as well as other countries in the Region.
The Chairperson clarified that the CCP does not aim to become a data protection agency or over-regulate. Instead, the study aims to provide guidelines serving as a minimum benchmark of basic disclosures companies should adhere to, to avoid deceptive marketing practices.
The participants were senior level representatives of the regulatory bodies, corporate sector, SMEs, online trading platforms, Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), chambers of commerce, and consumer associations. Established in 2008 and recently revived, the CCG is an informal think-tank, which provides a platform to consult with stakeholders on competition-related matters.
