ISLAMABAD: Chairman of the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP), Dr. Kabir Ahmed Sidhu, attended the Global Forum on Competition, which was held by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on 7-8 December in Paris, France. The Forum brought together heads of competition authorities from more than 110 nations worldwide.
Chairman Sidhu also acted as a moderator in the breakout session on “Use of Economic Evidence in Cartel Cases on how can competition authorities effectively communicate economic evidence in court and to non-experts.” John Davies, a Member of the Competition Appeal Tribunal, United Kingdom, and Cristina Camacho, Head of Cabinet and Head of International Relations of the Portuguese Competition Authority, were the other speakers in the session.
Competition Commission of Pakistan’s Methods Change
In his address, Chairman Sidhu underlined the CCP’s shift from traditional evidence-gathering methods, such as dawn raids, to a more proactive approach.
He said that the commission has introduced a new Market Intelligence Unit to leverage advanced technology and data analytics. The MIU aims to observe market data effectively, identifying collusive practices and boosting the enforcement capabilities of the commission.
He said that due to the increased market concentration and enhanced vertical integration in Pakistan’s markets, establishing a dedicated department for data collecting and analysis became necessary. The establishment of this department will effectively resolve challenges in collecting cartel evidence.
