Social and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africa

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dc.contributor.advisorDavis, Dennisen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorGitonga, Robert Kaniuen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2016-01-25T11:53:59Z
dc.date.available2016-01-25T11:53:59Z
dc.date.issued2015en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical referencesen_ZA
dc.description.abstractA principal goal of competition law is to promote fair distribution of wealth. Fair distribution of wealth is entrusted to competitive markets since they reward efficiency, innovation, spread wealth and decentralise economic power. While competition reflects the business conduct of enterprises, it cannot disassociate from the legal and regulatory framework, barriers to entry and prevailing conditions in markets for labour, infrastructure services and other production inputs. Redistribution of wealth acknowledges competition law as a tool that can be utilised to protect those at the lower end of income distribution by reducing prices allowing a larger basket of goods and services to be purchased. Competition law is a tool that preserves market competition to provide an environment that encourages responsive business, efficiency and serves the interests of consumers. In developing countries, competition law and policy receive particular emphasis as being crucial and key in the economic and structural reform and addressing concerns of distribution and power. Competition law in Kenya cannot ignore the wider industrial policy or socio-economic considerations in Kenya. These social and political goals of competition law are important in developing countries with poverty, great income inequality. There is need to choose a means of addressing the equitable allocation of resources that will produce the least amount of inefficiency and competition law is the right tool to achieve this. Kenya is a factor-driven economy where the level of productivity is determined by labour, institutions, infrastructure and the macro-economic environment. Enacting the Competition Act in Kenya was a response to economic and political reform to improve the welfare, well-being and economy in Kenya. Merger analysis in Kenya would require weighing gains and losses in efficiency in order to establish whether the merger will benefit other recipients other than market participants such as consumers and producers. South Africa has well established interpretation and implementation addressing the trade-off between public interest provisions and efficiency. Interpretation of the merger laws in South Africa illustrate engaging an exercise of proportionality required to determine how to balance the competing arguments between efficiency, welfare standards and public interest.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationGitonga, R. K. (2015). <i>Social and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africa</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Law ,Department of Commercial Law. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16538en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationGitonga, Robert Kaniu. <i>"Social and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africa."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Law ,Department of Commercial Law, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16538en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationGitonga, R. 2015. Social and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africa. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Gitonga, Robert Kaniu AB - A principal goal of competition law is to promote fair distribution of wealth. Fair distribution of wealth is entrusted to competitive markets since they reward efficiency, innovation, spread wealth and decentralise economic power. While competition reflects the business conduct of enterprises, it cannot disassociate from the legal and regulatory framework, barriers to entry and prevailing conditions in markets for labour, infrastructure services and other production inputs. Redistribution of wealth acknowledges competition law as a tool that can be utilised to protect those at the lower end of income distribution by reducing prices allowing a larger basket of goods and services to be purchased. Competition law is a tool that preserves market competition to provide an environment that encourages responsive business, efficiency and serves the interests of consumers. In developing countries, competition law and policy receive particular emphasis as being crucial and key in the economic and structural reform and addressing concerns of distribution and power. Competition law in Kenya cannot ignore the wider industrial policy or socio-economic considerations in Kenya. These social and political goals of competition law are important in developing countries with poverty, great income inequality. There is need to choose a means of addressing the equitable allocation of resources that will produce the least amount of inefficiency and competition law is the right tool to achieve this. Kenya is a factor-driven economy where the level of productivity is determined by labour, institutions, infrastructure and the macro-economic environment. Enacting the Competition Act in Kenya was a response to economic and political reform to improve the welfare, well-being and economy in Kenya. Merger analysis in Kenya would require weighing gains and losses in efficiency in order to establish whether the merger will benefit other recipients other than market participants such as consumers and producers. South Africa has well established interpretation and implementation addressing the trade-off between public interest provisions and efficiency. Interpretation of the merger laws in South Africa illustrate engaging an exercise of proportionality required to determine how to balance the competing arguments between efficiency, welfare standards and public interest. DA - 2015 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2015 T1 - Social and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africa TI - Social and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africa UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16538 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/16538
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationGitonga RK. Social and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africa. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Law ,Department of Commercial Law, 2015 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16538en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Commercial Lawen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Lawen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherCommercial Lawen_ZA
dc.subject.otherCompetition Lawen_ZA
dc.titleSocial and political goals of mergers in competition law: comparative analysis of the efficiency and public interest provisions in Kenya and South Africaen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameLLMen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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