Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment within the context of competition law

Abstract

This paper reflects on competition law that incorporates Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) features. The aim of this paper is to explain and discuss the relevance of B-BBEE in competition law. It seeks to determine if there is a supporting role that the Competition Act 89 of 1998 does or should play when it comes to B-BBEE. The public interest goals together with merger consideration in terms of the Competition Act 89 of 1998 (as amended) will be discussed, more particularly as they relate to small-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and historically disadvantaged people (HDPs). This paper posits that most SMEs are owned by HDPs, so supporting SMEs largely equates to supporting HDPs, thereby centering both concepts on B-BBEE