The Sixth United Nations Conference to Review all Aspects of the Set of Multilaterally Agreed Equitable Principles and Rules for the Control of Restrictive Business Practices is scheduled to be held from Monday 8 to Friday 12 November 2010.
The Sixth United Nations Review Conference will mark the thirtieth anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Set of Multilaterally Agreed Equitable Principles and Rules for the Control of Restrictive Business Practices (United Nations Set).
The session will open in Room XVIII on the 1st floor of the Palais de Nations, Geneva, at 10 a.m. on Monday 8 November.
This ministerial meeting will be opened by the Secretary-General of UNCTAD and provide an opportunity for ministers, heads of competition authorities and senior officials of member States of UNCTAD to discuss competition issues at the national level and international voluntary cooperation, including with existing networks of competition authorities, and to promote the use of competition law and policy as tools for achieving economic growth and domestic and international competitiveness (Accra Accord, para. 104). In this connection, the Conference will assess the experience gained so far in the implementation of the United Nations Set and make recommendations for possible areas of improvement and effective implementation.
Background documents and agenda
The provisional agenda, together with the secretariat's annotations thereto, is being circulated as document TD/RBP/CONF.7/1.
In line with the agreed conclusions adopted at its tenth session in July 2009 by the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Competition Law and Policy, which acted as the preparatory body for the Sixth Review Conference (TD/B/C.1/CLP/6), the Conference will allow high-level discussions on the role of competition policy for development and provide an opportunity to enhance international cooperation in this area.
It will also be the occasion to conduct voluntary peer review of competition law and policy of Armenia. In addition, the Conference will hold high-level consultations around the following three clusters of issues:
- Implementation of competition law and policy;
- Review of the experience gained in the implementation of the UN Set, including voluntary peer reviews; and
- The role of competition policy in promoting economic development.
In accordance with past practice, the Conference is expected to provide guidance to UNCTAD on its future work programme in this area, including technical assistance and capacity building for developing countries and LDCs, as well as economies in transition.
Written contributions
In order to facilitate the deliberations and the informal exchange of experiences and best practices on the three clusters of issues to be discussed, member States and observers are requested to submit written contributions to the UNCTAD secretariat by Monday 27 September 2010 in order to allow participants to prepare themselves for the consultations.
Participation
States members of UNCTAD are requested to submit to the UNCTAD secretariat by Friday 15 October 2010 the credentials of their representatives and advisers.
The specialized and related agencies, as well as interested organs of the United Nations and intergovernmental and directly concerned non-governmental organizations in consultative status with UNCTAD that wish to participate in the Conference as observers, are requested to inform the UNCTAD secretariat by the same date of the names of their representatives.
To expedite the process of registration and issuance of security badges, copies of the letter of credentials of representatives and the registration form for each participant should be faxed to the UNCTAD secretariat at the address below as early as possible and before 15 October 2010.
Further information and contact details
Communications concerning representation should be sent to the UNCTAD secretariat, Intergovernmental Support Service, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10; fax: 41 22 917 0214; e-mail: meetings@unctad.org.
Substantive and other inquiries should be addressed to the UNCTAD secretariat, Competition and Consumer Policies Branch; fax: 41 22 917 0247; e-mail: hassan.qaqaya@unctad.org and veronica.rivera-cruz@unctad.org.
(signed)
Supachai Panitchpakdi
Secretary-General of UNCTAD
26 April 2010