WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/WGTCP/W/190
29 May 2002
(02-2943)
Working Group on the Interaction
between Trade and Competition PolicyOriginal:  English
COMMUNICATION FROM AUSTRALIA
The following is the final text of a paper received from the Permanent Mission of Australia
which was circulated as an advance copy for the Working Group's meeting of 23-24 April 2002.
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INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
ON COMPETITION LAW AND POLICY:
AUSTRALIA'S EXPERIENCE
Australia has an active programme of technical cooperation and policy dialogue with
developing countries aimed at strengthening their capacity to participate in global and regional trading
arrangements and to encourage the exploitation of trade opportunities to their best advantage.
The Australian aid programme places high priority on effective partnerships with the
countries it seeks to assist.  Much of Australia's aid is designed, delivered and assessed jointly with
the governments of partner countries.  Australia's programmes are tailored to meet their most pressing
development needs.  Country strategies focus on helping to reduce poverty, promoting economic
growth, investing in human resources and protecting the most vulnerable groups in society.
Australia recognises that the provision of technical assistance is important for developing
countries, who may face difficulties in securing anticipated gains from international trade
liberalisation.  Through these various programmes, assistance is provided to help developing countriesidentify and manage the potential economic and social impacts of trade and investment liberalisation,
identify new sources of revenue and market opportunities, and cope with the institutional and
regulatory requirements of the global trading system.
Australia also notes the importance of sound economic governance in developing countries
and in 1997 governance was made a specific focus for Australia's aid programme.  Effective
governance ensures that sound fiscal, monetary and trade policies are instituted to create an
environment for private sector development.  A dynamic private sector creates jobs and incomes,
generates wealth and ensures resources are used efficiently.
Australia's experience with developing countries, particularly within the APEC region,
reinforces the importance of technical assistance and capacity building as an integral part of the
development of multilateral competition rules, as was highlighted in the Doha Ministerial declaration.
In this context, progressive reinforcement of comp etition institutions through an incremental approach
to capacity building is most effective.  Commonwealth entities such as the Department of Foreign
Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the Department of Treasury, the Australian Agency for International
Development (AusAID) and Australia's competition regulator, the Australian Competition andWT/WGTCP/W/190
Page 2
Consumer Commission (ACCC) have been involved in numerous technical assistance programmes.
Technical assistance normally involves the ACCC making available its resources and expertise in
competition policy and law enforcement, consumer protection law and policy and utility regulation.
Funding for substantive technical assistance derives from the Australian Government's overseas aid
programme, managed by AusAID.
Australia believes that with the advent of globalisation, brought about by the reduction in
barriers to international trade in goods and services and capital, competition has spread across national
barriers.  As a result, there is a need for countries to address cross-border competition problems and
ways of addressing them.  As a developed country, with experience in applying a long tradition of
promoting competition policy and law amongst producers, Australia has endeavoured to engage in
capacity building and information sharing on competition policy, law and enforcement at a bilateral,regional and multilateral level.
An overview of Australia's recent international and technical assistance activities follows,
updating previous submissions on this subject (WT/WGTCP/W/125 and WT/WGTCP/W/148).
I. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
A. I
N COUNTRY ASSISTANCE
Indonesia
The ACCC has participated in an ongoing consultancy project, with funding assistance from
AusAID, to provide technical assistance to the Directorate of Consumer Protection of the Indonesian
Ministry of Industry and Trade in the implemen tation of the Prohibition of Monopoly Practices &
Unhealthy Competition Law.  The assistance has involved "in country" consultancies to develop and
define short-term and long-term objectives for the work of the Directorate.
Papua New Guinea (PNG)
The ACCC has been working with the PNG Consumer Affairs Council to assess possible
future assistance with developing existing staff and organisational structures and resources to cope
with the implementation and administration of new competition and consumer legislation.
B. STUDY VISITS
One major aspect of the Australian Government's liaison and technical assistance work
involves receiving visits to Australia.  During 2000-2001 the ACCC hosted short-term study visits to
Australia by officials from the following econom ies: Argentina, Canada, the People's Republic of
China, Chinese Taipei, Egypt, Fiji, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Lebanon, Macao,Malaysia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South
Africa, Sweden, The United Kingdom, The United States of America and Viet Nam.  These visits
involve a range of government and non-government officials active in the fields of competition,
consumer protection and regulation.
Under the provisions of the PNG-Australian Treasury Twinning Scheme (PATTS), the
Australian Department of the Treasury provides capacity building support for PNG's Departments of
Treasury and Finance.  Preparations are under way for Treasury to host a senior official of PNG
Treasury on a short-term visit to Canberra to study competition and consumer protection policy
development and implementation.WT/WGTCP/W/190
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During 2000-2001 officials from South Africa attended a five day basic Investigation Course
that the ACCC runs on a regular basis and where possible endeavours to accommodate participation
by international officials, on a cost recovery basis.  It is proposed that officials from Egypt and Hong
Kong attend future courses.  The course exposes participants to aspects of the ACCC's enforcement
work and attendees participate in exercises designed to develop skills in areas such as interviewingpotential defendants and obtaining witness statements.
C. I
NTERNSHIP PROGRAMME
The ACCC's International Internship Programme began in 2000.  This programme enables
officers from developing economies to work as inte rns at the ACCC for a period of approximately one
year.  Participants are expected to develop a sound knowledge and understanding of Australia's
competition law and other related legislation, and gain an awareness of the political, commercial andsocial environments and the management framework in which the ACCC and its counterparts operate.
To date officials from Samoa, Zambia and Papua New Guinea have participated in the programme.
The 2002 programme involves interns from Zambia and Zimbabwe.
D. S
TAFF EXCHANGE PROGRAMMES
Over the past twelve months, Australia has participated in bilateral staff exchanges with the
New Zealand Commerce Commission, th e Canadian Competition Bureau and the Chinese Taipei Fair
Trade Commission.
In 2002 the ACCC will commence two new staff exchange programmes with the Office of the
Telecommunications Authority (OFTA) in Hong Kong and the UK Office of Gas and Electricity
Markets (OFGEM).
The ACCC currently has staff seconded to the Hong Kong Consumer Council and the Hong
Kong Office of the Telecommunications Authority.
E. EFFECTIVENESS OF TYPES OF ASSISTANCE
Australia's experience suggests that the effectiveness of cooperation activities strongly
correlate with the stage of development of the country's competition regime.  For instance, in-country
training appears most effective where competition legislation exists.  Where it does not, it is seen as
more effective to train persons in Australia where they can examine legislative and regulatory
structures and ACCC operations first-hand.
In relation to training in Australia, experience suggests that smaller delegations are most
effective in facilitating interactive learning.  In addition, where the composition of inbound
delegations is mixed, there is more effective exchange of information and experiences.
In-country consultancies and staff exchanges have been found to be most appropriate for
countries that have established competition laws and require specific technical assistance that focuses
on implementation issues. These arrangements are effective in providing practical skills based
training.
Technical assistance in the competition policy field should not be restricted to just
competition agency officials.  It is also highly useful to involve members of the judiciary, academia,
business and consumer organisations, as examples, in order to develop an entire "culture of
competition" that is understood and accepted across the entire community.WT/WGTCP/W/190
Page 4
II. COOPERATION
Australia actively cooperates with other countries on competition matters, including on
economic and governance issues and in developing appropriate frameworks for promoting
competition.  Australia sees considerable value in encouraging such cooperation.  Coordination and
cooperation with other countries can help to minimise the distorting effects from anticompetitivepractices, particularly as trade is increasingly globalised, with commercial markets spanning more
than one national jurisdiction.  Such work also assists Australia to better understand competition
issues and potential best practice, both for the Australian economy and for other societies.
International cooperation on competition also supports Australia's aims in other policy areas, such as
trade policy and domestic economy reform.
A. C
OOPERATION AGREEMENTS
The most significant cooperation agreement in existence is the treaty between the
Government of Australia and the Government of the United States of America signed on
27 April 1999 on mutual antitrust enforcement assist ance.  Under the Treaty, Australia and the United
States can exchange evidence on a reciprocal basis for use in competition law enforcement and assist
each other in obtaining evidence located in the other's country while ensuring that confidentialinformation is protected.
In relation to consumer protection matters, the ACCC signed an agency-based cooperation
arrangement with the US Federal Trade Commission on 17 July 2000 to address consumer protection
issues such as cross border Internet fraud.
On 26 October 2000 the ACCC entered into a tripartite cooperation arrangement with the
New Zealand Commerce Commission and the Canadian Competition Bureau to promote cooperation
and coordination in the application of each agency's respective competition and consumer laws.
Bilateral agency based arrangements covering both competition and consumer protection regulationwere made with the Taiwan Fair Trade Commissi on on 13 September 1996 and the Consumer Affairs
Council of Papua New Guinea on 26 November 1999.
III. INTERNATIONAL FORA
Australia actively participates in competition, consumer protection and public utility
committees within APEC, OECD, WTO and the International Marketing Supervision Network(IMSN), through attendance and/or submissions to these organisations' regular meetings.
A. APEC
Work within this group continues to focu s on regulatory reform in APEC economies,
technical assistance and development programmes, and capacity building and institutionaldevelopment in the region.  In 2001 Australia participated in a new joint initiative, the  APEC-OECD
Co-operative Initiative on Regulatory Reform , which draws together regulatory reform work being
done in the APEC and OECD forums.  This work, in the form of a series of workshops and seminars
where more than forty countries from Europe, America and Asia exchange experiences and
information on issues of regulatory management and institutions, competition policy, market opennessand economic sectoral frameworks, will continue in 2002 with two workshops in Mexico and Korea.
Australia, jointly with Japan and Peru led the work of the coordinating group on
Strengthening Economic Legal Infrastructure and completed Menus of Options for "StrengtheningWT/WGTCP/W/190
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Economic Legal Infrastructure" which called for early implementation and development of
cooperative projects in capacity and institutional building, corporate law and competition policy.
Australia also actively participated in the five APEC Partners For Progress (PFP) training
programmes held once a year from 1997 to 2001. In May 2001 Australia also participated in the9
th meeting of the APEC Energy Regulator's Forum (ERF) , a component of the Energy Working
Group of APEC.  The Forum provides an opportunity for APEC member economies to discuss
detailed issues surrounding reforms to the energy sector, as well as emerging regulatory and market
development matters.
Australia continues to contribute to the ongoing development of an APEC competition policy
and law Internet database.
B. OECD
Australia continues to actively participate in, and provide submissions to, the meetings of the
OECD Competition Committee and its workgroups.  The Chairman of the ACCC is also long term
Co-chair of the OECD Joint Group on Trade and Competition.
C. WTO
Australia continues to take a keen interest in developments in the WTO Working Group on
the Interaction between Trade and Competition Policy.  Australia's priorities are to work
constructively towards the development of a balanced framework of multilateral rules on competitionmatters.
D. IMSN
Australia has Presidency of the International Marketing Supervision Network for the period
of 2002-2003, during which time the ACCC will  host two conferences in Australia.
E. ICN
Australia is a member of the Interim Steering Group for the International Competition
Network (ICN).  The ICN is a project-oriented, consensus-based, informal network of antitrust
agencies from developed and developing countries that will address antitrust enforcement and policy
issues of common interest and formulate proposals for procedural and substantive convergence
through a results-oriented agenda and structure.  The focus will be on improving world-widecooperation and on enhancing convergence through focussed dialogue.
F. ASEAN
In March 2000, the ACCC hosted an ASEAN Workshop titled Making Markets Work  in
Bangkok, Thailand.  The Workshop aimed to build a network of key agents of reform in the region;promote skill development in the establishment and enforcement of competition, consumer protection
and economic regulatory regimes;  identify opportunities and priorities for promoting competition,
consumer protection and economic regulation in the region;  and raise awareness of the importance of
the broader economic and welfare goals of competition, consumer protection and economic regulation
policies.
The Workshop was attended by some sixty participants including both high level decision
makers and operational level staff from a range of countries in the ASEAN and wider Asian and
Oceanic region.WT/WGTCP/W/190
Page 6
G. ISCCO
The International Society of Consumer and Competition Officials (ISCCO), the Secretariat of
which was managed by the ACCC, conducted its first international conference in Taipei in June 2000.
The goal of the workshop was to provide a forum for practical, non-policy and outcome orienteddiscussion and action by competition and consumer officials.
A second ISCCO Workshop for the year titled Governments Delivering Consumer Welfare
was conducted in Durban, South Africa in November 2000.  The ISCCO workshop was held in
conjunction with the Consumers International 16
th World Congress on Consumers, Social Justice and
the World Market, also conducted in Durban in November 2000.
ISCCO is no longer in existence, its operations were wound down in 2001.
IV. INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES
Conferences or workshops for officials from a range of countries at various stages of
economic development serve as valuable fora for the exchange of ideas and experiences in the
implementation and enforcement of competition policy and law.  They present a good opportunity for
participants to identify opportunities and prior ities for advocating competition frameworks and to
form valuable cooperation networks.
Australia has actively participated in numerous international conferences and workshops
including:
• September 2000 – a conference hosted by the Swedish Competition Authority focussing on
reasons regulators should be concerned with cartels and collusive behaviour.
• October 2000 – a conference in Italy on competition trade and development to discuss the
relationship between competition, trade and develo pment and in particular, to examine the impact
of competition and trade policies on development.
• July 2001 – an APEC workshop in Hanoi to further consider the development of a competition
regime in Viet Nam.  Australia gave a presentation titled Comments and observations on the
Australian experience and on the draft competition legislation for Viet Nam.
• August 2001 – Conference on Network Industries in Finland covering media, banking, airlines,
intellectual property and telecommunications.
• August 2001 – Seminar in Brazil on Anticompetitive practices in times of globalisation.   Australia
gave a presentation on The Australian Experience in International Cooperation.
• January 2002 – American Bar Association conference on cartels held in New York.  Australian
officials participated as panel members.
• February 2002 – DePaul University Predatory Pric ing Symposium in Chicago.  Australia gave a
presentation on the state of airline regulation in Australia.WT/WGTCP/W/190
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The ACCC also hosted an international regulation and investment conference in Sydney in
2001 that was attended by 200 delegates from the utility industries, regulatory bodies, consulting
firms, government agencies and universities.  A similar event is being planned for May 2002.
V. FURTHER BUILDING OF COMMON UNDERSTANDING IN THE WTO CONTEXT
The activities described above enhance countries' participation in WTO trade and competition
related work.
Australia welcomes and supports the proposed activities to be undertaken jointly by the WTO
and UNCTAD and will participate wherever possible.
Australia also recognises the importance of inte r agency co-operation in regard to technical
assistance and capacity building in the field of competition policy, particularly to exchange
experience in regard to the needs of developing countries, the best way of meeting them and
identifying specific opportunities that maximise cooperation and coordination.  Furthermore, we
endorse the steps being taken to ensure that the exchange of information and other cooperationmechanisms are part of an ongoing process that complements, rather than duplicates work undertaken,
thus ensuring a cumulative and mutually supportive impact.
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