Myanmar, 26-28 February - Officials from ASEAN competition authorities and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) shared experiences and strategies related to drafting regulations and implementation guidelines, in a two-day workshop held in Nay Pyi Taw.

With representation from Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, and Viet Nam, the practical workshop allowed professionals to strengthen their regional cooperation and consider their approaches, experiences and challenges in drafting regulations and guidelines associated with the implementation of their own national competition laws.

As these countries prepare to implement new or revised competition laws, the workshop provided practical assistance in the preparation and dissemination of important documents such as sub-decrees, rules, regulations and guidelines, which will guide the implementation of these laws. The workshop also included small group activities for participants to practice applying their knowledge and skills, as well as panel sessions for deeper discussions between peers.

Global law firm Baker & McKenzie and Melbourne Universitys Wendy Ng joined ACCC presenters to provide private sector perspectives on the importance of stakeholder consultation and effective communication to promote awareness and clarity of the final regulations and guidelines. As competition authorities in ASEAN continue to develop, this will be paramount to the success of enforcing their respective competition laws in the future.

Viet Nam Competition and Consumer Authority (VCCA) participant, Tieu Quang Khanh said, "The content of the workshop is beneficial and applicable to our agency, especially as our new Competition Law will take effect in July 2019. We are currently drafting three implementing Decrees, with several guidelines and policies to actively enforce the Law. This workshop provides us with the knowledge and practical skills needed to draft such documents from start to finish."

Representative from Lao PDR, Phomma Inthanam stated, "The newly established Lao Competition Commission is drafting implementing rules and guidelines to expand our Competition Law in more detail to provide clarity to our stakeholders. The knowledge and experiences we have gathered from this workshop will be directly applied to our work in our home agency."

The activity was organized and delivered by the ACCC, with support from the ASEAN Secretariat, as part of the Competition Law Implementation Program (CLIP), under the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area Economic Cooperation Support Program. Currently in its third phase, CLIP extends and leverages practical expertise and knowledge developed at both the individual and institutional levels.