EUROPEAN PROFILES S.A

The overall objective of the project is to improve the application of the law and regulations governing competition in Moldova, where it’s purposes are the following:

• To enhance the capacity of the National Agency for the Protection of Competition (now the Competition Council);
• To improve the competition culture in the Republic of Moldova.

Under this project, specific results will lead to:

1. Support an improved understanding of the staff of the Council on a wide range of competition issues;
2. Better analysis of issues and better prosecution of offences;
3. Improving the competence of all staff, officials and the wider group of participants.

Specific activities are divided into a number of components, each one dealing with separate aspects of competition. These components include:

• Horizontal and vertical agreements;
• Abuse of dominant position;
• Mergers and acquisitions;
• Bid rigging;

• Identify elements of all components of the competition system of Moldova which need reinforcement. Set up performance and success indicators for the project, especially those that may rely on a before and after survey. Publish an inception report detailing the programme of institutional strengthening which will result from the project.
• Prepare a development plan to strengthen those elements which are considered to be weak; arrange the appropriate response. Provision of formal training, on-the-job advisers, case study examples, provision of publications, exposure to other equivalent organisations abroad (study tours, internships) etc. support for the agency by learning by doing (working with agency staff on their current work-load and drawing comparisons with other similar and different cases from international experience).
• Prepare and deliver a programme of cultural change in the competition environment of Moldova. This programme extends to all levels of society, including high level public officials and the judiciary, and should be continuous and progressive throughout the period of the project.
• Prepare a User Requirement Specification for a database, search and reporting system for managing information necessary of a Competition Authority. This includes electronic records of all previous and current cases in Moldova. The records of live cases provide a case management system, records of actions taken and needed, status of the case (e.g. record of payment of fines etc.) a system for prompting follow up. Review publicly available sources of software to provide this information service. Provision of recommendations for the most suitable source of the software. Installation and test the system and train Competition Council staff in its use. Provide access to appropriate on-line databases of cases, legal and economic research and other closed sources of information related to abuse of competition. Provided capacity building in order to undertake electronic modelling of particular forms of abuse, the consequences and the remedies. Provide abuse-specific and sector-specific methodologies for such analysis.
• Support to staff development via conducting specific analysis, TNA, further detailed analysis containing specific elements for each major area of potential violation of conditions of competition: a) guidance on detection, assessment of priorities and investigation of hard core cartel cases, b) guidance on assessment of various types of horizontal and vertical agreements.
• Support to the Council for conducting inspections. Advised on preparation of a dossier, advance information, preparation of related accounts, premises etc., schedules of what to look for, how to conduct inspections and team management and leadership of inspection. Especially, knowledge of detection, assessment of priorities, and investigation of cartels, dawn raids to collect evidence, interviewing in this context, specialised techniques for capture and use of digital information.
• Provide assistance to the legal department to build an understanding of the principles of competition-friendly legislation. Provide support by commenting on draft laws currently presented to the Competition Council in their possible effects on competition. Provide assistance to the legal Department in its responsibility to build the legal position in support of cases of action against anti-competitive behaviour. Provision of training to anticipate the arguments, research the legislation, present evidence of infractions, and prepare judgements and present precedents from Moldovan and EU experience. Consolidate capacities of legal department to prepare solid cases in support of the economic arguments.
• Review the penalties currently available to the Council. Recommend changes to the structure of penalties through the legal process, if appropriate. Train all departments in the sanctions available to the Council as provided by the law. Train the Council in preparing and following a strategy for use of penalties. Provide a matrix of the extent of offence caused by a range of infringements and a set of bench-marks of corresponding penalties.
• Competition in Public procurement: Provide a separate component for addressing violations of competition in the public procurement system. Set up co-operation with the Public Procurement agency to generate a programme of improvement in the public procurement process. Concentrate on abuse of competition against the public purse, through risk analysis of conspiracy to pervert the public procurement process by bidders.

• Archidata (leader)

• DMI