ASEAN considers setting-up a research centre for competition

MANILA, 5 October 2017 – ASEAN officials gathered on September 27 in Manila to discuss initial steps toward the establishment of an ASEAN Research Centre for Competition (ARCC) by 2020.

The ARCC aims to encourage and consolidate research on competition policy and law, as well as networking and exchange amongst researchers, academicians and practitioners. Further, it will provide capacity building for ASEAN competition officials and relevant stakeholders in competition policy and law.

“The centre can be a space for collaboration and discourse on research activities, training, and other capacity building programs on competition law and policy,” said Dr. Arsenio Balisacan, Chairman of the Philippine Competition Commission.

Meanwhile, Dr. Julian Nowag, Senior Lecturer of the University of Lundt of Sweden and Lead Facilitator, stated that knowledge sharing amongst competition authorities remains integral and can induce cross-fertilization of different country’s experiences.

Said officials exchanged views on existing networks and research facilities on competition policy and law that are available in each ASEAN Member State, the steps towards establishing the centre based on international best practices, as well as the structure, functions, processes of the ARCC including the possibility to establish a virtual ARCC in the initial stage.  Preparatory work is being undertaken to commence a study to establish the ARCC, which is expected to be completed by early next year.

The meeting was organised by the Philippine Competition Commission with the support of the ASEAN Secretariat and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, upon commission of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

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