What Do We Know about Competition Agencies in Emerging and Transition Countries? Evidence on Workload, Personnel, Priority Sectors and Training Needs

Abstract

During 2003, the World Bank sent a needs assessment questionnaire to 48 competition agencies in transition and emerging countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Responses were classified according the World Bank’s analytical regional grouping and the evidence allows a cross-regional comparison of competition agencies’ workloads, personnel, priority sectors and training needs. The view of competition authorities as a homogenous group across countries and regions can be discarded strongly. The analysis of the needs assessment questionnaire shows there are significant heterogeneities among competition agencies’ mandates, exempted sectors, professional personnel endowment and capacity needs. Responses confirmed the growing importance of competition policy issues in infrastructure services (i.e. market foreclosure, access to essential facilities) and the need to foster coordination between sector regulators and competition agencies. An important lesson for the design of training courses is that competition agencies do not need introductory courses. There is a significant demand for training on substance, on how to solve day-to-day technically challenging cases in the areas of mergers and acquisitions and abuse of dominant position.