Competition policy advocacy
The Authority is entrusted with powers to engage in competition advocacy consisting mainly in providing information to stakeholders on competition matters. Section 42 (2) (g) of the Act mandates the Authority to develop appropriate procedures for public sensitization, consultation and participation.
The EAC Competition Authority outreach and advocacy strategy 2019 – 2024 was adopted by Commissioners. The Outreach and Advocacy Strategy comprises of knowledge, strategies and arguments for explaining the benefits of competition to support the competition awareness efforts with stakeholders.
Competition outreach and advocacy provides for activities to be conducted by the Authority to promote regional competitive environment for economic activities by means of non-enforcement mechanisms, mainly through its relationships with stakeholders. Advocacy activities provided include reviewing legislation and policies to assess their impact on competition and consumer welfare, advising Partner States on matters relating to competition and consumer protection.
The EAC Competition Prioritization Framework on Competition Enforcement and Conduct of Market Studies was adopted by Commissioners in May 2021. The framework provides a criterion regarding setting priorities by the Authority as this was expected result into efficient implementation of activities.
By breaking down big projects into smaller manageable sections, the framework was expected to encourage case teams to contemplate getting the best value for money by considering; which cases or programmes could offer the greatest value in the future. This would facilitate teams to make recommendations on whether to increase, decrease or maintain spending funds on a case or programme.
