Minister of Industry and Trade Simplex Chithyola Banda has said the Competition and Fair Trading Act, which regulates competition and consumer welfare in Malawi, is outdated.
He said the law is not in tandem with trends in the area of competition and consumer welfare.
At the weekend, Chithyola Banda had an interface with members of the Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament and the Parliamentary Committee on Industry, Trade and Tourism as well as Competition and Fair Trading Commission (CFTC) on review of the Competition and Fair Trading Act.
In his speech, Chithyola Banda observed that the current Competition and Fair-Trading Act as well as the Competition and Fair-Trading Regulations were enacted more than two decades ago.
He said, since then, there have been significant changes in the economy as well as the business environment.
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He said, to foster economic development in Malawi, it is important that the country has an enabling business environment that allows all businesses to compete fairly and one that also ensures that the rights of consumers are respected.
“This is why the Ministry of Trade and Industry is excited that the Competition and Fair- Trading Commission has reviewed the legal framework and has developed a Competition and Fair Trading Bill as well as Regulations that will operationalise the Bill.
“The bill will, among other things, provide for a more effective enforcement regime through fines and penalties as well as various legal remedies that will ensure that anti-competitive and consumer rights violations are not tolerated in our economy,” Chithyola Banda said.
He added that the new law will clear the inconsistencies and ambiguities in the current Act.
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“It is also pleasing that not only has the Bill incorporated some international competition and consumer protection best practices, principles and standards, but it has also included provisions on collaboration with other multilateral bodies in enforcing competition and consumer protection law.
“Your role in promoting just competition and fair trading in the country cannot be overemphasised. It is Parliament alone that can deliberate on various bills that are tabled in Parliament and, eventually, pass them into law, if acceptable,” he said.
Commenting on the development, one of the lawmakers, Albert Mbawala, said the CFTA is important in regulating monopolies and ensuring an efficient economy and that is why it must be up to date, arguing that the current law is archaic.
“It is important to review laws that are up to date and let us not use archaic laws. It is important that these laws are reviewed as frequently as practical,” Mbawala said.
