Maintaining competition within the construction sector is integral to ensure efficient and sustainable sector growth, to support the pursuit of the Wawasan Brunei 2035. A competitive market is expected to lead to more choices at competitive prices for consumers. This was highlighted by Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Awang Eddie bin Dato Paduka Haji Sunny, the Chairman of Competition Commission of Brunei Darussalam at the opening ceremony of an ASEAN Competition law workshop attended by more than 50 officials from the competition authorities and regulators from the construction sector across 10 ASEAN Member States.
With the aim to strengthen the interface between regional competition authorities and construction sector regulators to tackle competition issues in the construction sector, the workshop is organised by the Department of Economic Planning and Development, Ministry of Finance and Economy through the Department of Competition and Consumer Affairs, in collaboration with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the ASEAN Secretariat under the support of the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area Economic Cooperation Work Programme.
Amongst those present at the opening ceremony were Yang Berhormat Dayang Siti Rozaimeriyanty binti Dato Seri Laila Jasa Awang Haji Abdul Rahman and Yang Berhormat Dayang Nik Hafimi binti Abdul Haadii, members of the Legislative Council; members of Competition Commission of Brunei Darussalam and senior officials from competition autority, sector regulator and Attorney General Chamber.
In his welcoming remarks, Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Awang Eddie bin Dato Paduka Haji Sunny shared that the construction sector is a fundamental sector of every economy, playing an important role in the socio-economic development of a country. Not only does it build and maintain the structure and infrastructure on which every other industry depends, but it is also a major employer in many countries. In ASEAN, the construction sector is set to grow by 6.1% yearly on average in the next 5 years. It is thereforce critical to build knowledge among authorities and sector regulators to ensure that the business environment in the construction sector is functioning efficiently and free from anti-competitive activity to guarantee maximized returns to the economy.
As a country with a very new competition regime, the Chairman expressed appreciation to have the valuable platform to gain insights to build understanding and awareness on current issues affecting competition in the construction sector and how construction sector regulators and competition authorities can work together in achieving efficiency in this sector in driving towards goals of Wawasan Brunei 2035, as well as the development goals of other ASEAN Member States. He expressed hope in working together to further elevate the role of competition law in driving our domestic growth as well as the region’s economic cooperation and integration goals.
Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Eddie concluded by highlighting that competition laws and policies are an essential part of the institutional and regulatory framework needed for ASEAN member states to address current market challenges.
Facilitated by experts from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne, the workshop discussed the key elements of competition laws in ASEAN member states and the role of governments in curbing anti-competitive practices, case studies and practical examples specific to the sector were also used to help participants in understanding the application of competition law.
The workshop will run from 30th – 31st October 2018 at the Rizqun International Hotel as part of a series of competition interface workshops between ASEAN competition authorities and sector regulator under the Competition Law Implementation Programme managed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission under the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area Economic Cooperation Work Programme.