African Competition Forum Releases Book on Competition in Africa

The nature of competitive rivalry, and the power and interests of large firms and their owners, is at the heart of how countries develop. Large firms shape the economy as these firms can make the investments required in productive capacity, provide the upstream inputs and services required by smaller businesses and, in many areas, are also the main routes to market. At the same time these firms tend to have market power if competition between them is weak. In crude terms, it is critical whether these firms are able to focus on extracting rents through market power, or whether the returns reward their effort, creativity and entrepreneurship.

Competition authorities and economic regulators are critical institutions in restraining the market power of firms while at the same tie taking into account the need to incentivise investment. To that end, the African Competition Forum (ACF) has released a book on competition in Africa. The book entitled Competition in Africa - Insights from Key Industries is the result of a study in six ACF member countries of Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia.

The book maps out key issues in competition through four key studies in the cement, sugar, poultry and fertiliser industries across Southern and East Africa. It considers the nature and extent of market power, the development of large firms, their production, investment and the prices of products across countries.

This takes into account the work of competition authorities in the different countries and the implications of industrial policies. The concluding chapter draws out critical implications for competition, regional integration and economic development. This fills a big gap as there are no similar publications relating to this important topic.

The Competition Authority of Botswana participated in the study and Mr. Ernest Bagopi and Ms. Thabiso Mbongwe from the Investigations and Research Department contributed to the poultry and cement study reports respectively.

The ACF is a network of 35 regional and national competition authorities in Africa.

To purchase this book go to http://www.loot.co.za/product/simon-roberts-competition-in-africa/ptpk-4...

Source: ACF