Burger King Merger Prohibition Highlights Competition Commission's Increased Focus On Public Interest Objectives

In contrast to Canada, South Africa's competition law has both competition and public interest objectives. A major focus of the legislation from a public interest perspective is the promotion of historically disadvantaged persons and small business. This is understandable, given the fact that when the legislation was first enacted in 1998, South Africa was emerging from an apartheid era of concentrated large enterprises and the exclusion of many, particularly historically disadvantaged persons, from the economy.

This focus is apparent in the legislation, with the preamble to the Competition Act (the "Act") noting that "the economy must be open to greater ownership by a greater number of South Africans". The purpose of the Act is also clear, being to "promote and maintain competition" in South Africa in order to achieve several objectives, including "to ensure that small and medium-sized enterprises have an equitable opportunity to participate in the economy; and