Moving towards regional investment arbitration in Africa

Table of contents

• The proliferation of Regional Investment Agreements in Africa
• The rebalancing of the investor-state relationship—from ‘Rule Takers’ to ‘Rule Makers’
• MFN and FET clauses
• Concept of ‘investment’
• Promotion of sustainable development
• Limited access to ISDS
• Counterclaims by the host state
• Procedural complexities for African states
• Conclusion

Article summary

Law360, Expert Analysis: Over the past two decades, the growth of foreign direct investment in Africa, driven by China’s global economic strategy, has prompted many African states to reconsider the direction of international investment law. In particular, African states have established a number of regional economic communities (RECs), that seek, inter alia, to recalibrate a perceived imbalance in favour of investors in investment arbitration, at the expense of developing states. Laurence Shore, partner in Bonelli Erede Pappalardo and associates, Justin Alexander Gambino and Federica Perinetti of the same firm consider this development.