The ACCC has today welcomed competition commissioners and agency leaders from ASEAN countries and New Zealand for three days of meetings in Brisbane. This will be the first time many of South East Asia's newly appointed competition commissioners will have met their regional counterparts to discuss key competition law developments in the region.
The Commissioners' Retreat, supported by the AANZFTA Competition Law Implementation Program (CLIP), aims to provide a forum for the open and frank exchange of views and information on current competition law issues in the region, as well as how agencies and commissioners work to protect and support fair and open competition in their markets.
Participating in the retreat are commissioners and senior staff from established competition agencies in the region, including Australia and New Zealand, as well as recently appointed commissioners from the newest competition agencies in South East Asia, such as Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.
"Our region is becoming more integrated and interconnected and opportunities to step up our economic engagement are great. As competition regulators, we can also expect to be addressing common challenges," ACCC Chair Rod Sims said.
"I am a firm believer in the importance of dialogue and cooperation to build trust and understanding. As leaders of national competition agencies, we can all benefit from sharing our experiences and expertise implementing competition laws."
Background
The ACCC's Competition Law Implementation Program (CLIP) delivers targeted capacity building and technical assistance to Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States to help combat anti-competitive activities in individual markets and the ASEAN region.
Under CLIP, ASEAN Member States receive tailored training, mentoring and other practical support from the ACCC and other international experts to introduce and implement national competition laws to meet commitments under the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint, ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA) and the ASEAN Competition Action Plan 2025.
The ASEAN Member States are Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei and Vietnam.
