Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio

The Deputy Superintendent for the Protection of Competition of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, Mr. Jorge Enrique Sanchez Medina, participated in the WTO Thematic Seminar on Competition Policy, Trade, and Development: Reviewing Practical Experience with Existing WTO Agreements held in Geneva, Switzerland, from June 12 to 14, 2018.

This seminar focused on three main ideas: I) the policy options provide solutions for improving the international competition ecosystem to reinforce the international trade agenda; II) applying competition policy to optimize current international trade frameworks; III) harnessing the power of free trade agreements as vehicles for incremental harmonization of competition laws and practices.

Day one, members of the WTO Secretariat along with representatives from academia and international organizations highlighted the importance of competition policy for trade and development, as well as for developing economies. They also, emphasized the competition elements in existing WTO Agreements, reviewing WTO Accession Protocols and Trade Policies. Likewise, international authorities and organizations’ representatives along with scholars presented the application of competition policy vis-à-vis intellectual property rights, explaining the competition law enforcement in relation to IP.

Day two, there was some presentations on: first, government procurement and competition policy; second, on trade in services, competition and e-commerce; third, on competition policy and regional integration, explaining recent trends and implications for developing countries; fourth, on government procurement, trade liberalization and competition policy.

Day three, speakers focused on the one hand, in the current challenges of competition policy in the global economy; and on the other, in international cooperation in the area of competition policy.

The participation of the Deputy Superintendence was of great importance, since it enabled him to acquire a wide knowledge of competition policies promoted by the WTO. In addition, presentations about government procurements and competition policies, competition policies and intellectual rights, competition and e-commerce enriched the work of the Deputy Superintendence for the Protection of Competition in relation with the other Deputy Superintendences working on these topics within the Organization.