International Cooperation and Harmonization in Competition Law

Experience with various legal assistance projects for developing countries in Asia shows that the situation and level of development of competition law regimes differ greatly among Asian countries. What kind of legal assistance in the field of competition law each country needs therefore depends on the specific local situation. To improve legal assistance in Asia, the JFTC should develop a more sophisticated strategy of legal assistance for future medium-and-long-term assistance projects. It should also coordinate such projects better with other partners in Japan and with potential co-operation partners in other developed countries that also provide legal assistance to countries in Asia. Moreover, the specific needs, perceptions, and principal legal values of the recipient countries should be taken into account more. In particular, legal assistance in Asia has to consider that there is a general tendency in many Asian countries to put more emphasis on fair competition than on free competition. It is therefore not promising to only implement Western models of competition law frameworks, which at present often prioritize ensuring free competition and efficient markets. In this regard, Japan can be a good example for many Asian countries, because the regulation of unfair trade practices is a very important part of Japanese competition law.