The Competition Act of 2012 and Bangladesh Competition Commission: Challenges and Possible Solutions

Bangladesh enacted the Competition Act in 2012 to ensure consumers’ access to goods and services at a reasonable cost and affordable means providing that the producers in the market do not abuse their market power. It is hoped that the law will improve production and pricing efficiency, benefiting both consumers and producers. As the main regulative body under the said Act, the Bangladesh Competition Commission has been established in 2016 to deal with the implementation and adjudication under the Act. However, implementation and execution of competition laws have always been major challenges for Bangladesh and questions remain regarding how effective this law will actually prove to be. Several issues like ambiguous provisions, institutional capacity, power and role of the Bangladesh Competition Commission etc. put stress on the successful implementation of competition regime in this country. This article aims at the effectiveness of the Act and the Competition Commission, their challenges and possible solutions thereto.