Publication: Competition Law and Regional Economic Integration : An Analysis of the Southern Mediterranean Countries
Date
2004-06
ISSN
Published
2004-06
Author(s)
Geradin, Damien
Abstract
This study argues that adoption
strengthening of a competition law regime is a key component
of the regulatory reforms, which are required to allow a
market economy in the Mediterranean region. It also argues
that the competition rules inserted in the Association
Agreements signed between the European Union (EU) and the
Mediterranean Partners (MPs) currently fail to provide
adequate protection against anticompetitive practices
affecting trade between these blocks. Moreover, the
competition law regimes adopted by the MPs are generally
poorly enforced with the consequence that many domestic
anticompetitive practices remain unchallenged. In addition,
this study addresses the issue of regulatory convergence
between the EU and the MPs in the field of competition law,
that is, whether the MPs should align their competition
rules on European Community (EC) competition rules. It
argues that while such convergence would bring a series of
benefits to both the EU and the MPs, it would also involve
costs. The study thus argues in favor of a prudent approach
whereby the transposition of EC competition rules in the MPs
would not be automatic, but would be based on the local
circumstances of each MP. One of the primary tasks of the
MPs' competition authorities should be to develop a
realistic enforcement agenda, which would ensure that the
limited resources of these authorities are used in the most
effective manner possible. In its final part, this study
proposes a series of steps that could be taken by the
European Union and the MPs to strengthen competition policy
in the Mediterranean region, including proposals for
technical assistance in the field of competition law.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Geradin, Damien. 2004. Competition Law and Regional Economic Integration : An Analysis of the Southern Mediterranean Countries. World Bank Working Paper;No. 35. © Washington, DC: World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/14940 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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