1.   The EU-TAF is a Team Europe €24.5M fund to support the AfCFTA implementation. This program covers the period of 2022 to 2024 and is funded by the EU, Germany, France, Sweden and implemented by GIZ, Expertise France and FIIAPP.

2.      The EU-TAF is set up as a Team Europe Initiative tool to deliver, in a reactive, flexible and on demand basis, the adequate technical assistance to meet the needs of the AfCFTA Secretariat, African Union Commission and AU specialized agencies, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), AU Member states, continental and regional private sector organizations, and other potential partners working on implementing the AfCFTA and African economic integration.

 Objectives and outputs of the EU-TAF 

3.      The EU-TAF seeks to contribute to African economic integration through the realisation of the AfCFTA (overall objective). It has two specific objectives: 

  i.            enhance the capacity for preparing and conducting the remaining negotiations, and

       ii.            strengthen the institutional capacity of targeted African institutions and countries to successfully implement the AfCFTA.

  The ECOWAS Commission set up the ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority (ERCA) to represent the ECOWAS region in matters of competition and consumer protection.

The ECOWAS Regional Strategy for the implementation of the AfCFTA was adopted in July 2023 by the 90^th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers. Under the supervision of the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture and the coordination of the Directorate of Trade, all technical Directorates of the Department, including ERCA, have a role to play in the operationalization of the Regional Strategy. 

  Moreover, in furtherance to the Agreement of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority (ERCA) is in charge of the monitoring compliance with the AfCFTA Protocol on Competition Policy.

Under the current staffing situation at the ECOWAS Commission and its Agencies, which is characterized by insufficient human resources, additional responsibilities arising out of the need for the implementation of AfCFTA obligations will need fully dedicated technical personnel working within ERCA to support effective monitoring and implementation of the AfCFTA Protocol on Competition Policy.

  The requested support will facilitate the attainment of the continental as well as regional objectives of the socio-economic integration of Countries in the African Region. Specifically, the missions of ERCA which are backed by the Revised ECOWAS Treaty, subject specific Legal Texts, Community Policies and the ECOWAS Vision 2050 are all targeted at achieving a Customs Union and a Common Market. Additionally, the requested support will strengthen the implementation of the other Acts of the AfCFTA and the ECOWAS Community Acts related to Competition Policy.

  The centrality and the importance of the ECOWAS Commission's Directorate of Trade in the context of regional implementation of the AfCFTA cannot be overstated because of the coordinating responsibility bequeathed to it within the ECOWAS organization, to drive and monitor AfCFTA implementation in the ECOWAS Region.

  Competition law enforcement is a critical aspect of ensuring a level playing field in the market and promoting economic development. In the African context, this becomes particularly important with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement, aiming to increase trade activities within the Continent. To ensure that businesses operating in West Africa adhere to competition regulations, cooperation between the AfCFTA Secretariat and ERCA is crucial.

  A Framework of Collaboration between the AfCFTA Secretariat and ERCA on Competition Law Enforcement in West Africa should be developed to facilitate this cooperation. The framework should outline the areas of collaboration, including information sharing, capacity building, and joint market studies and investigations, among others. Its development is part of the ongoing efforts to promote a fair and competitive business environment in West Africa under the Regional Competition Rules and the AfCFTA Protocol on Competition Policy. Under this framework, the AfCFTA Secretariat and ERCA will collaborate to facilitate the implementation of their respective competition policies in a coordinated manner.

  The ECOWAS Competition Framework was adopted in 2008 through two (2) Supplementary Acts: the Supplementary Act A/SA.01/12/08 adopting the Community Competition Rules and its application modalities, the Supplementary Act A/SA.02/12/08 on the establishment, functions and operations of the ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority (ERCA) . ERCA was officially inaugurated on 12th June 2018 and its activities effectively started in January 2019.

The Community Competition Rules aim to promote and encourage competition within the ECOWAS region by discouraging practices that hamper the proper functioning of the regional market. ERCA is responsible for monitoring the market in order to prohibit agreements, decisions taken by business associations and cartel practices that may disrupt trade between ECOWAS Member States and that have the object or effect of hindering, restricting or distorting competition in the regional market.

  For the operationalization of the general principles described in the two founding texts mentioned above, the ECOWAS decision-making bodies (the Council of Ministers and the Authority of Heads of State and Government) adopted in December 2021, a set of subsidiary regulations:

                                    i.            a Supplementary Act amending the Supplementary Act A/SA.02/12/08 which institutes, in particular, the ERCA Council,

                                  ii.            a Regulation on the powers and composition of the ERCA Council,

                                iii.            a Regulation on the ERCA procedures,

                                iv.            a Regulation adopting the rules of procedure on mergers and acquisitions, and

                                  v.            a Regulation adopting the rules on leniency and immunity.

All these legal texts constitute a major step forward in the effective implementation of the ECOWAS Competition Policy. However, some provisions deserve to be completed and further specified through Procedures Manuals, reference guides, information forms and directives, which, where appropriate, are detailed in the above-mentioned regulations.

In addition, adequate competition enforcement instruments are yet to be put in place in many countries. There are disparities, sometimes significant between the countries, making difficult a smooth implementation of competition rules at the regional level. The institutional framework in which competition in the countries evolves is at the early stages. The provisions relating to the creation of a competition entity are most of the time not forward-looking when they exist, with regard to international best practices. This justifies a real need for updating and consolidating the existing frameworks.

The level of implementation of the provisions in the regional competition framework remains low. Popularization and ownership of the Regional Competition Policy by member States (including competition monitoring agencies, economic actors and consumers, especially the youth and women), as well as its institutionalization and integration into national legislation are still very  poor.

  This Terms of Reference (TOR) therefore, sets forth the terms and conditions for engagement of a long-term consultant to propose modalities for strengthening competition monitoring and enforcement within the ECOWAS Common Market taking account of the ECOWAS Competition Framework and the AfCFTA Protocol on Competition Policy.