Bangladesh Country
Advocacy Document
Iftekar Ahmed
Senior Research Fellow, BEI
September 27, 2005
Competition Law/Policy in
Bangladesh
• No Competition Policy
• Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practice
(Control and Prevention) Ordinance, 1970
• Has not been implemented but still valid
• Ordinance prohibits
– Undue concentration of individual economic
power
– Unreasonable monopoly power
– Unreasonable restrictive trade practices
MRTP Ordinance 1970
• Relevant phrases are not properly
explained
• Provides for the creation of a Monopoly
Control Authority to enforce the provisions
of the Ordinance, but was never
constituted
• Never been implemented
• If revived needs amendments
• Need for a new law
ct i
ve
M
pr
ic
ef
ixi
ng
on
op
oly
Di
Bi
sc
rim
dr
ig
ina
Re
gin
tor
sa
g
le
yd
pr
ea
ice
lin
ma
gs
int
en
Ex
an
cl u
ce
siv
ed
ea
lin
En
g
try
ba
r ri
er s
Ti
ed
se
M
lli
ar k
ng
et
sh
Pr
ari
ed
ng
ato
ry
pr
ici
Re
ng
fu
sa
lt
od
ea
l
Co
lle
Most Prevalent Anti-Competitive
Practices in Bangladesh
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Challenges
• Challenges to instituting a competition
regime are enormous
• No quick and simple remedy that will be
immediately effective across the board
• Even if a law is drafted, past experiece
shows poor implementation with weak
enforcement
Develop Constituency
• Targeted stakeholders for advocacy and
capacity building
– Government
• sensitize and motivate
– Business
• demonstrate benefits of a competition regime
– Media
• galvanize wider public understanding and support
– Consumers
• empower to champion and act as pressure group
Three-Step Process
Step 1: Create demand
– Raise awareness of stakeholders
Step 2: Draft/Amend/Adopt Law
– capacity building of policy makers
– wide consultation
Step 3: Implementation and enforcement of
law
– capacity building of the Competition Authority
Strategy 1: Target Sectors
• Identify priority sectors
• Selection Criteria:
– High visibility
– Wide impact
– Rapid implementation
– Demonstrable benefits
Strategy 2: Information Cell
• Create an Information Cell and Consumer
Hotline
• Monitor abuses of market power
• Generate competition status reports
• Provide dialogue space for stakeholders
Strategy 3: Consumer Awareness
• Information dissemination
• Conduct training on competition issues
Strategies
Step 1
Step 2
Create Demand
Draft Law
Strategy 1:
Target Sectors
Strategy 2:
Information Cell
Strategy 3:
Consumer Awareness
Step 3
Implement Law
government
competition regime
market
Competition
Authority
business
Business
Assoc.
consumer
Media
information
cell
informed
consumer
civil society