National News

ISLAMABAD, June 1 (APP): The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP)
held a workshop on “Guidance on Competition Compliance (GCC)” at Overseas
Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) on May 23.
The workshop was based on the Commission’s Guidance for Competition
Compliance, (available on www.cc.gov.pk) launched in December 2016, to
encourage and promote voluntary compliance of the law, said a statement
issued here on Thursday by the commission.
The guide explains the nature of competition law enforcement in Pakistan to show how competition law risks can arise if they are not understood or managed.
It also provides suggestions that can help businesses approach the
management of risks in a systematic and effective way and the steps they can
take to reduce financial and reputational risks from any transgressions.
The workshop was hosted by the Secretary General OICCI,
Abdul Aleem and Deputy Secretary General OICCI, Moin Mohajir,
along with other OICCI officials.
The CCP delegation was led by Chairperson CCP Vadiyya
Khalil along with Ikram Ul Haque Qureshi, (Member).
The other CCP officers were Ahmed Qadir, (Director
General); Noman Laiq (Director); Arshad Javed and Sophia
Khan, (Deputy Directors Legal Department), who gave
a consolidated presentation and elaborated various aspects of
Competition Act, 2010 and the essential components of
the compliance programme.
The workshop participants were the members of OICCI and representatives of the business community.
The presentation was followed by the question-and-answer session.
At the start, the OICCI General Secretary Abdul Aleem welcomed the CCP
team and shared highlights of the recently launched Business Confidence
Survey, OICCI members’ CSR contributions and OICCI’s perspective of the
country’s economic overview.
Chairperson Khalil referred to the long-standing
relationship between the OICCI and CCP saying that it was the
sixth joint event between the two and the very first workshop
of the Guidance on Competition Compliance.
She said that the CCP is not only a market enforcer but also
a market developer.
She said that competition law in Pakistan is pro-business:
it ensures investment, innovation, growth, and development
of businesses which in turn leads to a more robust economy.
Compliance with the law has become especially important in
the field of competition law.
The Commission wants to help businesses confidently instill
a culture of compliance within their organisations and, for
this purpose, will be doing similar workshops with other
businesses to promote voluntary compliance with competition law.