Today (3/11/2019), the Palestinian Farmers Union held the 3rd meeting between the members of the Fair Competition Council, which PFU formed as part of the project “Integrated Market Development Program across the Occupied Palestinian Territory” in cooperation with Oxfam and funding by DANIDA. The meeting was attended by PFU executive director, Mr. Abbas Melhim; the General Manager of the Competition Department in the Ministry of Economy, Mr. Jamal Abu Farha; Assistant Deputy of Economy in the Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Tarek Abu Laban; and economics specialist Dr. Naser Abd El-Kareem. The attendees also included Ma’moun Al-Abed (Customs Control), Mahmoud Hussein (Peasant Farmers Union), Mohammad Nasibah (Paltrade), Ashraf Barakat (MoA), Adleen Karajah (PACU), Fathi Ayash (Grapes Council).
Dr Abd El-Kareem presented the preliminary results of a study he is conducting for PFU’s benefit on competition in the agricultural field. He presented data collected from Customs Control and other governing bodies related to smuggling, market flooding, and forms of monopoly. The attendees discussed these results and offered notes and recommendations regarding the data. Dr Abd El-Kareem will analyze these recommendations and update the study accordingly, then create an executive summary and distribute the study within two weeks. This study will be the basis for the policies conference to be held in December of this year, concerning market management, monopolies, and competition law.