Foreword
The OECD has been active in promoting competition policy in countries across Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The partnership between the OECD and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has advanced these efforts. In competition matters, the annual Latin American and Caribbean Competition Forum (LACCF) has been a cornerstone of this collaboration. This unique forum brings together senior officials from countries in the region, to promote and support the identification and dissemination of best practices in competition law and policy. Twenty-one meetings have been held to date.
The OECD and the IDB have collaborated on a series of reviews of competition law and policy regimes in LAC since 2003. Peer Reviews are founded upon the willingness of a country to submit its laws and policies to substantive review by other members of the competition international community. This process provides valuable insights to the country under study and promotes transparency and mutual understanding for the benefit of all. There is an emerging international consensus on best practices in competition-law enforcement and the importance of pro-competitive reform. Peer Reviews are an essential part of this process, as well as an important tool in strengthening competition institutions. Strong and effective competition institutions can promote and protect competition throughout the economy, which increases productivity and overall economic performance. This is consistent with the policies and goals of the OECD and the IDB to support pro-competitive policy and regulatory reforms, which will promote economic growth LAC markets.
Peer Reviews are a regular part of the LACCF. In 2007, the LACCF assessed the impact of the first four Peer Reviews conducted at the LACCF on Brazil, Chile, Peru and Argentina, and the Peer Review of Mexico, which was conducted at the OECD’s Competition Committee. The Forum then reviewed El Salvador in 2008, Colombia in 2009, Panama in 2010 and Honduras in 2011. A follow-up of the nine Peer Reviews was conducted in 2012 as part of the LAACF’s 10th anniversary. In 2014, 2018 and 2019, Costa Rica, Peru and El Salvador had their competition regimes peer reviewed, respectively. In 2020, Ecuador was the latest country to be peer reviewed at the LACCF before the Dominican Republic.
This report served as basis for the Peer Review in the presence of lead examiners that took place at the 21st Latin American and Caribbean Competition Forum on 28 September 2023 in Quito, Ecuador. The lead examiners were Jorge Grunberg Pilowsky (National Economic Prosecutor, FNE, Chile), Guillermo Rojas Guzmán (Commissioner, COPROCOM, Costa Rica) and Andrea Marván Saltiel (Chair Commissioner, COFECE, México). The delegation representing the Dominican Republic during the Peer Review session was led by: Maria Elena Vásquez Taveras (Chairwoman, Pro-Competencia), Fior D’aliza Alduey (Executive Director, Pro-Competencia), José Beltré (Director of Competition Advocacy, Pro-Competencia) and Pedro Luis Montilla Castillo (Senior Legal Advisor, Executive Branch).
The OECD and the IDB would like to thank the lead examiners and all other officials that participated in the Peer Review examination. The OECD and the IDB are also grateful to the Dominican Republic’s Pro-Competencia for their valuable input, availability to answer queries, and support in facilitating interviews. Finally, the OECD and the IDB would like to thank all the stakeholders who accepted to participate in the meetings that took place during the fact-finding mission, held in the Dominican Republic from 27 to 31 March 2023, and who contributed to the completeness and the accuracy of the report.
The report was prepared by Iratxe Gurpegui (IDB Consultant) with research support by Vivian Ianelli, and reviewed by Marcelo Guimarães and Paulo Burnier, under the strategic supervision of Ori Schwartz (all from the OECD Competition Division). Mario Umaña (IDB) also provided valuable inputs throughout the entire Peer Review process.