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Bringing Competition Concerns in West Africa
to the attention of the International Community
Geneva, November 12, 2010
 CUTS released a publication
entitled Competitive Markets for Achieving Growth and
Development in West Africa, on the sidelines of the 6th UN
Review Conference on Competition Policy, being organised
here in Geneva by United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development (UNCTAD). “CUTS model of advocating for healthy
competition reforms in developing countries has been
recognised internationally as an effective approach to
develop ownership among national stakeholders”, said James
Zhan, Director, Investment and Enterprises Division of
UNCTAD, while releasing this publication on behalf of
Secretary General Supachai Panitchpakdi. This booklet
highlights the findings of a two-year project that CUTS has
implemented in seven countries of West Africa. Zhan added
that the CUTS project in West Africa adds to the
considerable knowledge on the subject generated by CUTS over
the years across Asia and Africa.
This was the first time that
CUTS published a bilingual book. The 7Up4 project
implemented in seven countries of West Africa included four
French speaking countries: Burkina Faso, Mali, Senegal and
Togo apart from three English speaking countries: Ghana,
Nigeria and The Gambia. The booklet brings out key lessons
on competition law and policy in these countries, and points
to an emerging consensus among national stakeholders that it
is necessary to evolve competitive markets to achieve
development and protect interest of consumers.
Amadou Dieng, Director of
Competition representing the West African Economic and
Monetary Union (WAEMU) stated that the CUTS project has
helped stakeholders and decision makers in WAEMU member
countries realise the gaps in implementation of a robust
competition regime that is an imperative for efficient
functioning of markets and economic development in the
region.
Philippe Brusick, former head of
the Competition and Consumer Policy Branch of UNCTAD and the
adviser to the project urged that CUTS and UNCTAD should
collaborate in the future to undertake similar capacity
building initiatives in other regions, to promote a healthy
competition culture globally.
Zhan also commended the
excellent work done together with UNCTAD by CUTS ‘from
Singapore to Cancun’ referring to the first Ministerial
meeting of the WTO in 1996 where work on investment was
initiated in the WTO, and the fourth Ministerial meeting in
2003 where the issue was suspended from the negotiating
agenda of the ongoing Doha round of trade talks. Pradeep
Mehta, Secretary General of CUTS added that CUTS will
continue to collaborate with UNCTAD on competition and
investment issues as it has done earlier.
For more details of the
project visit:
www.cuts-ccier.org/7Up4
This booklet can be downloaded at:
http://www.cuts-ccier.org/7up4/Fr/pdf/7up4-Synthesis_Report-Fr.pdf
(French version) and
http://www.cuts-ccier.org/7up4/pdf/7up4-Synthesis_Report-En.pdf
(English version)
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