THE government has announced a series of measures to reinforce anti-competition enforcement and curb bid-rigging in public procurement, including proposed amendments to the Competition Act 2010 and a strategic collaboration between the Malaysian Competition Commission and the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
The initiative forms part of a whole-of-government approach to protect market fairness and transparency.
In a signing ceremony, the Malaysian Competition Commission (MyCC) and the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS) formalised a Letter of Understanding to bolster understanding, compliance, and enforcement of competition laws.
The agreement, signed by MyCC Chairman Tan Sri Idrus Harun and Datuk Dr. Nagulendran Kangayatkarasu, the Chief Secretary of KBS, outlines cooperation in three key areas: providing early assessments of bid-rigging risks in procurement, conducting regular training for procurement officers within KBS and its agencies, and offering advisory services on competition-related issues and risks during procurement processes.
“The LoU represents a whole-of-government approach to enhance the effectiveness of efforts to curb cartel practices and fraudulent bidding in public procurement,” the Ministry stated, highlighting the need for strategic partnerships to strengthen regulatory oversight.
This agreement builds on MyCC’s broader efforts to combat procurement-related cartels, having previously signed five similar LoUs with the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, and the Federal Territories Department.
Concurrently, MyCC is proposing 14 new provisions to the Competition Act 2010 (Act 712) to address increasingly complex anti-competitive practices.
Key proposals include introducing explicit legal protection for whistleblowers, ensuring confidentiality of their identities in proceedings before MyCC, the Competition Appeal Tribunal, or other civil and criminal courts, and allowing MyCC to offer rewards to individuals whose information or assistance leads to the detection and sanctioning of violations under the Act.
“These measures are expected to encourage more proactive cooperation from both the public and industry in exposing complex cartel and monopoly practices,” said Minister of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali.
He added that the government would continue to strengthen strategic partnerships across all stakeholders to enforce anti-cartel measures in a firm, integrated, and sustained manner under the KITA GEMPUR initiative. - February 26, 2026
