Nigeria has won a big international arbitration dispute against , which would save the country some $6.2 million in claims and damages related to a stalled national e-procurement project.
The arbitration tribunal ruled that all claims against Nigeria were invalid, which was a big legal win for the country and its public institutions under President .
The disagreement was about the and a World Bank-backed electronic Government Procurement (eGP) system that was supposed to make federal contracts more open. European Dynamics wanted $6.2 million in damages and reimbursements for what they said were project milestones.
The User Acceptance Tests that Nigeria’s argument was based on showed that the program had major functional shortcomings. The tribunal concluded that the contractor hadn’t satisfied performance criteria and said that the vendor had to rectify all the problems at no extra expense.
The BPP Director-General called the decision significant because Nigeria is the first African country to win an arbitration case against the company. The Attorney General of the Federation remarked that the verdict sends a clear message that Nigeria will protect public monies and demand value for money.
. was in charge of Nigeria’s legal team.
People think that the verdict makes Nigeria’s push for accountability in public procurement stronger and indicates that the country can protect its interests on the world arena.
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