• Upon the initiative of the President of UOKiK, the heads of 10 anti-monopoly authorities have signed a Memorandum on regional cooperation in Warsaw.
• Its aim is to conduct joint operations for the benefit of competition protection development.
• The event was additionally attended by: the representatives of the European Commission, OECD and UNCTAD, as well as ambassadors of the states-signatories.

The Memorandum was signed by domestic competition protection authorities from Poland, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and two EU candidates: Moldova and Ukraine. The main objective of this initiative is to promote and enhance regional cooperation in the enforcement of  competition policy and laws. The participants will exchange their experience and best practices through working groups, study visits, workshops and informal meetings regarding, among others, pending market proceedings and research. The works within the framework of the understanding will be chaired by way of a rotating presidency - in 2023, UOKiK will assume this function.

- A tight cooperation with our counterparts in states from the Central and Eastern Europe region is of special significance both in the context of globalisation and the latest threats arising from the war in Ukraine. The meeting held today is an expression of our joint involvement in the activities aimed at long-term competition protection development. We wish to share our knowledge and experience with our partners from Moldova and Ukraine so as to support them in their road to become Member States of the European Union - says Tomasz Chróstny, President of UOKiK.

In December 2022, during the informal meeting of the representatives of the competition protection authorities held in Paris, the President of UOKiK presented a concept for deepening the support for Ukraine and Moldova in the field of competition protection which the European partners found interesting. This concept is reflected in today's meeting, which is being held at the highest level, with the presidents of these antimonopoly offices present in UOKiK's headquarters in Warsaw. The ceremony of signing the understanding was also attended by the Director General for Competition of the European Commission Mr Olivier Guersent, the head of the Competition Division of the Directorate for Finance and Enterprises of the OECD Mr Ori Schwartz, the head of the Competition and Consumer Policy Department of UNCTAD Ms Teresa Moreira as well as ambassadors of the states-signatories. The event was accompanied by the round table discussions pertaining to the issue of establishing priorities in enforcing the competition laws, efficient management of the institution and HR development.

As part of its presidency in 2023, UOKiK will organise workshops in Chisinau as well as study visits in Warsaw and Łódź for Moldovan and Ukrainian experts. The above will aim at providing practical skills in the issues of market collusions, state aid, market research, contractual advantage and communication activities. Moreover, meetings have been planned with UOKiK employees in Poznań and Bydgoszcz in the form of job shadowing.

The regional understanding is another initiative for the benefit of Anti-Monopoly Committee of Ukraine and Competition Council of Moldova. In 2022, the cooperation was held at the bilateral level and in the form of multilateral operations such as  expert workshops on competition law and concentration control that was done together with the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and KSAP [the Lech Kaczyński National School of Public Administration]. The Authority also performed a project financed by the funds of the Polish state aid for the benefit of the State Inspectorate for Non-Foodstuff Surveillance and Consumer Protection of Moldova (ISSPNPC).

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