Communication
The aim of the protection of market competition is primarily to create benefits for consumers and equal conditions for all entrepreneurs on the market, who, acting in accordance with the existing rules and competing on the market with the quality, price and innovation of their products and services, contribute to the overall development of the economy.
20 years of OECD-GVH Regional Centre for Competition in Budapest
In February 2005 the Hungarian competition authority (GVH) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) established the OECD-GVH Regional Centre for Competition in Budapest. Over the past two decades, RCC has become a key institution for capacity building assistance and policy advice in Eastern Europe and Western Asia.
On 28 February 2025 RCC marked its 20th anniversary with a conference aimed at analysing the RCC achievements and defining guidelines for future cooperation. The event was attended by distinguished guests, including Benoît Cœuré, president of the French competition authority and chair of the OECD Competition Committee, and Carmine Di Noia, director for Financial and Enterprise Affairs at the OECD. Croatia was represented by the president of the Croatian Competition Council, Mirta Kapural, PhD, and the vice-president Branimira Kovačević, MA.
RCC was established to strengthen expertise in competition law and policy, supporting competition authorities in Eastern and Southeastern Europe and Central Asia through educational programs. Similar centres exist only in Peru and South Korea. Since its founding, RCC has organized 158 events with nearly 5,700 participants and over 1,000 speakers.
Currently, RCC collaborates with 17 beneficiary countries, including Albania, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Ukraine, North Macedonia, Uzbekistan, and Armenia. The conference was attended by presidents of competition authorities from these countries.
The event was opened by Csaba Balázs Rigó, president of GVH, who emphasized that RCC has become a key platform for exchanging expert knowledge and shaping competition policy guidelines in the region. Bence Gerlaki, Deputy State Secretary for Economic Development Strategy, Direct Investments, Consumer Protection, and Trade, highlighted RCC’s importance for capacity building of competition authorities, as well as its role in promoting competitive environment and economic growth.
In her address, Mirta Kapural, PhD expressed gratitude for the cooperation over the past 20 years, noting that the CCA has been involved in RCC’s training programs since its inception. She pointed out that most members of the CCA expert staff and the Council have attended the RCC seminars and workshops on specific topics in competition law and economics. RCC’s training programs are specifically tailored to participating countries, with RCC covering all costs for attendees, significantly facilitating the participation of competition authorities.
For 2025 RCC plans to organize a series of new programmes and seven international seminars.
