The Need To Introduce Private Enforcement Of Competition Law In To The Ethiopian Legal System

Abstract

The quality of the enforcement framework of competition and consumer protection law determines the efficiency of trade competition and consumer protection in a market economy. Public and private enforcement measures can be used to enforce competition laws. The involvement of private individuals in competition law enforcement is one strategy to improve regulatory enforcement of competition law, and they should work together to accomplish effective deterrence in the most efficient way. The purpose of this study is to assess the importance of bringing private competition enforcement into Ethiopia's legal system. The thesis conclusions demonstrate that private parties are not legalized to implement Ethiopian competition law, based on a comparative doctrinal examination. This means that private parties who have been affected by violations of competition regulations cannot sue the offenders in a national court of law based on competition law for damages. Rather all the issues of enforcements are given to Trade Competition and Consumers Protection Authority (TCCPA). A complaint may not be further pursued in a civil court for a damages claim. As a result the country has been experiencing various competition abuses and enforcement gaps. A possible way forward is the introduction of private enforcement to supplement the public enforcement gaps. And the writer argued that Ethiopia should introduce private enforcement to complement the public enforcement gaps.