Africa-Press – Eswatini. Eswatini Competition Commission is zooming in on key sectors that drive economic growth to ensure they are protected from possible anti-competitive conduct.
The commission is an independent statutory body established for the purpose in encouragement of competition in the economy by controlling anti-competitive trade practices on top of overseeing mergers and acquisitions; and protecting consumer welfare; among other things. In a press briefing at Mountain Inn yesterday, Chief Executive Officer Muzi Dlamini said the commission was undertaking studies focused on the animal feed, agriculture and pharmaceutical sectors. The studies are being conducted simultaneously and they been initiated in the terms of Section (11)(2)(f) of the Competition Act of 2007.
Supporting
Dlamini said that his office was of the view the selected industries were not key to key towards supporting economic growth but they were also of public interest, as they were central to the welfare of the nation. “Given that these industries are also of national economic importance, any anti-competitive conduct in one or any of the industries would undoubtedly stifle economic growth,” stressed Dlamini. The study comes in the wake of unconfirmed reports suggesting an ‘illegal’ import of the scarce fertiliser, which was then reportedly sold at inflated prices. Responding to this allegation during the question and answer session, Dlamini said his office was only aware of the reports of the dramatic increase in fertiliser but said preliminary work was done to understand the nature of the increase.
Giving the rationale of the study, Dlamini further highlighted that competition in markets resulted in increased productivity and growth in key sectors, which will in turn, improved the country ‘s economic performance; open business opportunities to citizens; as well as reduce the cost of goods and services throughout the country. The research into the agriculture sector is said to be supporting government’s aspiration on the industry as highlighted by Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg in his budget speech last month.
Proportion
The minister noted that a significantly large proportion of fields that were ready for cultivation in Eswatini Nation Land were currently not being utilised. This demonstrated the vast potential for small scale farmers to boost production, leading to economic growth, poverty alleviation and an improvement of living standards. With regard to the pharmaceutical industry, Dlamini felt the latter was a very critical sector and anti-competitive acts in the market would have a detrimental on the lives of emaSwati. “It is vital for the commission to undertake an in-depth study into the competition dynamics in this industry that may adversely affect the supply and pricing of medicines in the country,” he said.
After the study, the commission hoped to identify key areas where competition may be constrained in order to make recommendations for interventions to correct any market distortions or policy reforms to promote investment, fair trade and ensure that consumers were protected. The public and relevant stakeholders have been invited to submit to the commission all relevant information that would enrich the finding of the market studies. Data collection for the studies are said to be already underway. Further technical and administrative details of the study, alongside with guidelines are also said to be available on the Commission’s website.
Questionnaires can be downloaded from the website or collected at the offices situated next to Mountain Inn in Mbabane. The contact person is Terence Mabaso, who is Manager Policy and Research. He can be contacted on 2404 0111 or 7606 2959.
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