PM: Considerable Scope for Mauritius to Become an Attractive Jurisdiction for International Arbitration

The National Assembly voted yesterday the International Arbitration (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill. It amends the International Arbitration Act so as to create the most favourable environment for international arbitration to thrive in Mauritius, resolve an ambiguity in the regime applicable to the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards, and facilitate the operation of the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards in Mauritius.

In his statement while presenting the bill the Prime Minister, Dr Navin Ramgoolam, expressed satisfaction that since the enactment of the International Arbitration Act in 2008 and its commencement on 1 January 2009, Mauritius has made significant progress in establishing itself as a centre for international commercial conciliation and arbitration and – in particular – as the centre of reference for the arbitration of disputes relating to Africa.

The Prime Minister outlined that Mauritius is regularly cited alongside the major international arbitral centres, and is fast becoming the first option for parties wishing to arbitrate in our region.

These developments, he said, clearly show that the leading institutions in the field recognise the importance of an increasingly regional approach to the settlement of international disputes, and the role which Mauritius can play in that respect in Africa. He further stated that there is considerable scope for Mauritius to develop as a state-of-the-art and attractive jurisdiction for International Arbitration.

Given the real advantages which the country can put to use including its perfect geographical location, Mauritius has great chances  to become a centre of reference for disputes involving Africa, South East Asia, India, China and Europe, he recalled.

Mauritius chaired the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) last year, and has been chairing the work of its Arbitration Working Group for the past three years. The result of this work will be the creation of a worldwide transparency registry which will allow civil society to access information relating to the arbitration of investment disputes held under UN rules.

This increased transparency will help to foster the legitimacy of investment arbitration and keep Mauritius at the forefront of modern arbitral jurisdictions, Dr Ramgoolam told the National Assembly.