The Madagascar competition regime comprises the Competition Law No. 2005-020 of 17 October 2005 and Decree No. 2008-771 of 28 July 2008 (collectively, “Competition Law”). The Competition Law has been amended by Law No. 2018-020 of 29 June 2018, which was published in the official Gazette on 11 February 2019. Subsequently, there have been no amendments to the Competition Law. 

The National Authority responsible for Corrective Commercial Measures (“National Authority”) is currently investigating the pasta and blanket industries. The National Authority, established by Decree No. 2014-1726, is an administrative public institution attached to the Ministry of Trade. The National Authority is authorised to make inquiries into unfair commercial practices that are disruptive to the national economy. In addition, it can take corrective measures to stabilise any industry or sector in accordance with the rules of the World Trade Organisation.

On 6 June 2019, the National Authority publicly expressed concern in relation to the detergent powder industry. The market was deeply destabilised by unregulated imports from China, which endangered local firms. The National Authority has temporarily added additional taxes on the importation of powder detergent in order to restore balance in the market. That being said, as of 6 June 2019, local counsel are not aware of any specific concerns publicly expressed by the Competition Council relating to any specific industry or sector.

In view of decisions of the Competition Council published on its website, since 2017, the specific sectors considered by the Competition Council as strategic or key sectors of competition law are as follows:

• coffee sector;
• rice sector;
• Primary Necessity Products (PNP);
• vanilla sector; and
• beer and rum sector. 

No. As far as local counsel are aware, the Competition Council has not conducted any dawn raids since January 2019. The Competition Council has jurisdiction to hear all cases relating to competition, including monopolies, concentrations, abuses of a dominant position and potentially anticompetitive agreements. The Competition Council is empowered to examine anticompetitive practices that may prevent, restrict or distort competition significantly in a market located within the territorial scope of the Unfair Competition Act. Furthermore, the Competition Council is empowered to implement competition policy through market surveillance missions and investigations relating to anticompetitive conduct. As of January 2019, local counsel are not aware of any searches conducted by the Competition Council.

To date, local counsel are not aware of any new regulations or competitive actions taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Local counsel note that no actions have been taken or sanctions imposed by the Competition Council against specific entities for violating competition law during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To the best of local counsel’s knowledge, the Competition Council has not, to date, entered into any settlement agreements with specific companies to cap the prices of products or services.

Local counsel are not aware of any new regulations or measures adopted by the Competition Council that apply to companies operating in the digital market sector.

In principle, the decisions and opinions issued by the Competition Council are published in the Special Bulletin of the Competition Council, pursuant to Article 27(3) and 57(5) of Decree No. 2008-771 of 28 July 2008 establishing the conditions for the application of the Competition Act (“Application Decree”).

In practice, this Special Bulletin of the Competition Council is not available to the public.

However, the Competition Council may, at its discretion, make certain of its opinions and decisions public on its website.

Local counsel are not in a position to indicate whether specific industries, markets or sectors have been considered by the Competition Council as constituting economic concentrations, in the absence of publication of the opinions and decisions of the Competition Council on its website.