Protection of the economic system and competition in Morocco

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Published: May 31, 2023

On 9-10 May, 2023 the Africa project section of the IRZ organised a conference with the Moroccan Public Prosecutor's office in Rabat on the subject of “Protection of the Economic System and Competition”, thus continuing the cooperation with the Public Prosecutor's Office that has been ongoing for several years.

The aim of the conference was to support the Moroccan Ministry of Justice in its current reform efforts in the area of economic criminal law, in particular competition crimes and to boost investment promotion and investment protection in accordance with the “National Initiative for Human Development” sponsored by the King. The conference also focused on training the Public Prosecutor's Office in how to conduct practical investigations.

The conference opened with a general introduction to competition law in Morocco and Germany, also taking into account the special role of the Federal Cartel Office, presented by Mr. Jörg Nothdurft, Head of the Department for Litigation and Law at the Federal Cartel Office The experts from Germany and Morocco then discussed the criminal law aspects and the practical investigation. Here, Dr. Julian Kammin, Public Prosecutor at the Public Prosecutor's office in Cologne, emphasised the relevance of criminal offences that have a direct impact on competition. The second day of the event dealt with the cooperation of various actors, including the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Federal Cartel Office in Germany or the Competition Council in Morocco, with respect to competition and other economic criminal proceedings. The civil law aspects of the topic, such as claims for damages, were also presented and discussed.

Various examples of case law in the area of competition in the German judiciary, the consideration of EU stipulations and international conventions aroused particular interest among the approx. 40 Moroccan attendees.