Shaping markets through competition and economic regulation is at the heart of addressing the development challenges facing countries in southern Africa. The contributors to Competition Law and Economic Regulation: Addressing Market Power in southern Africa critically assess the efficacy of the competition and economic regulation frameworks, including the impact of a number of the regional competition authorities in a range of sectors throughout southern Africa. Featuring academics as well as practitioners in the field, the book addresses issues common to southern African countries, where markets are small and concentrated, with particularly high barriers to entry, and where the resources to enforce legislation against anti-competitive conduct are limited. What is needed, the contributors argue, is an understanding of competition and regional integration as part of an inclusive growth agenda for Africa. By examining competition and regulation in a single framework, and viewing this within the southern African experience, this volume adds new perspectives to the global competition literature. It is an essential reference tool and will be of great interest to policymakers and regulators, as well as the rapidly growing ecosystem of legal practitioners and economists engaged in the field.

"What does it take for entrepreneurs to be effective competitors? What are the factors affecting entry and participation in sectors where there are historically strong incumbent firms? Opening the South African Economy brings to light the challenges of concentration, inequality and exclusion in different sectors of the South African economy. The book begins with an assessment of the current state of the economy. Detailed case studies then recount the experiences - good and bad - of well-known South African entrant firms in sectors that are critical for facilitating economic growth, including retail, food, fuel, telecommunications, airlines and banking. Important cross-cutting chapters reflect on the role that government policies can play in achieving a more open, inclusive and competitive economy and the use (and misuse) of policy tools such as competition law, black economic empowerment and state procurement. It concludes with a set of concrete recommendations for opening up the South African economy, improved coordination among state institutions and inclusive industrial development."--Back cover

Economic regulation, including competition policy, is not an end in itself but a means to an end, and must ultimately have a positive impact on the economy as a whole. However, this positive impact needs to be broad-based or inclusive, particularly in the context of South Africa given its legacy of non-inclusive growth and persistent inequality. An area where increased participation is important in achieving more inclusive growth in a developing country context is in the procurement of large-scale infrastructure. The South African experience with procuring large-scale renewable energy-based electricity generation capacity carries interesting lessons in this respect.The paper reviews the development of South Africa's large-scale renewable energy sector from an economic regulation and inclusive growth lens. The regulatory framework governing the sector is examined, looking at both the policy and institutional environment, and their role in contributing to inclusive growth objectives. As such, the paper investigates the role that economic regulation can play in stimulating inclusive growth, through the promotion of both competitive and socio-economic outcomes. The paper also looks at the importance of factoring vested interests in order to maximize inclusive growth outcomes through economic regulation.

Sustainable economic development has played a major role in the decline of global poverty in the past two decades. There is no doubt that competitive markets are key drivers of economic growth and productivity. They are also valuable channels for consumer welfare. Competition policy is a powerful tool for complementing efforts to alleviate poverty and bring about shared prosperity. An effective competition policy involves measures that enable contestability and firm entry and rivalry, while ensuring the enforcement of antitrust laws and state aid control. Governments from emerging and developing economies are increasingly requesting pragmatic solutions for effective competition policy implementation, as well as recommendations for pro-competitive sectoral policies. A Step Ahead: Competition Policy for Shared Prosperity and Inclusive Growth puts forward a research agenda that advocates the importance of market competition, effective market regulation, and competition policies for achieving inclusive growth and shared prosperity in emerging and developing economies. It is the result of a global partnership and shared commitment between the World Bank Group and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Part I of the book brings together existing empirical evidence on the benefits of competition for household welfare. It covers the elimination of anticompetitive practices and regulations that restrict competition in key markets and highlights the effects of competition on small producers and employment. Part II of the book focuses on the distributional effects of competition policies and how enforcement can be better aligned with shared prosperity goals.

The paper will assess certain outcomes in the implementation of competition policy in South Africa to address the exertion of market power unilaterally by large firms or through collusive arrangements. Through reviewing the theoretical framework and literature linking competition policy and barriers to entry with economic participation, the paper develops a framework for understanding the centrality of competition legislation as a microeconomic tool towards achieving more inclusive outcomes in the South African economy. The paper draws on specific case studies from recent South African competition cases, impact assessment studies, and cross-country interventions in key sectors such as telecommunications and energy to demonstrate the role of competition policy in addressing strategic barriers to entry and participation in key economic sectors of the South African economy.