The Budapest Education Center of the Hungarian Competition Authority and the OECD held a seminar on the competition law challenges of the pharmaceutical market

The pharmaceutical industry plays an extremely significant role in the economies and healthcare systems of OECD countries. It is not only a fundamental pillar of healthcare, but also one of the industries representing high added value, which is also crucial for job creation, research and development (R&D) and international trade. As a result, the topic has numerous competition policy and competition law aspects, which also pose tasks and challenges for national competition authorities.

The three-day professional seminar organized by the GVH and OECD Joint Budapest Education Center between 25-27 February 2026 at the GVH headquarters in Budapest dealt with the most important challenges in the pharmaceutical markets of smaller economies, paying special attention to competition law issues, especially manipulation practices related to tenders and bids. The seminar provided the participants with the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of various aspects of competition law and share their experiences, while GVH experts also actively contributed to expanding the knowledge base. In addition, participants were able to gain practical experience from competition law experts from OECD member countries.

The professional event also highlighted the fact that the Hungarian national competition authority pays special attention to the pharmaceutical market. In mid-February 2026, it also initiated two competition supervision proceedings on suspicion of restriction of competition and abuse of dominant position.

The Center, operated by the GVH and the OECD, was established on February 16, 2005 with the primary goal of building on the professional background of the two institutions to provide support in the field of competition law and competition policy to the competition authorities of Eastern and Southeastern European and Central Asian states by organizing competition law training and other professional programs. There are three such training centers in the world, one in Budapest, one in Peru and one in the Republic of Korea, and a fourth center will start operating in Saudi Arabia this year.

The Budapest training center celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2025. During this time, the ROK has organized more than 160 events, providing more than 6,000 experts with the opportunity to share knowledge and exchange experiences. More information about the activities of the ROK is available on the Gazdasági Versenyhivatal and the Regional Competition Education Center websites.