Excitement builds for 10th ICC Africa Conference on International Arbitration, in Lagos

Leading lawyers and international arbitration experts from across the African continent and beyond are eagerly anticipating next week’s 10th ICC Africa Conference on International Arbitration, which is returning to its original home of Lagos after being held in Nairobi the past two years. 

The hosting of the tenth anniversary ICC Africa Conference further strengthens Nigeria’s position as a major centre for international arbitration, legal innovation and commercial dispute resolution in Africa, said Dorothy Ufeme Ufot, SAN, Chair of the ICC Nigeria Commission on Arbitration and ADR, and Jean Chiazor Anishere, SAN, a member of the ICC International Court, at a press conference held yesterday. 

The main conference programme will be held across two days, 4-5 June 2026, at the Lagos Continental Hotel in Victoria Island, following an ICC Institute of World Business Law Advanced Training on Drafting Enforceable Awards on 3 June. 

Last chance registrations are now open. 

Themed “A Decade of Excellence: Shaping the Future of International Arbitration & ADR in Africa”, this year’s ICC Africa Conference is expected to gather several hundred delegates from more than 30 countries across Africa, Europe, and Asia. 

Ufot noted that while for decades disputes involving African resources and projects were largely resolved abroad, the continent was gradually taking ownership of dispute resolution arising from investments and commercial activities in Africa. 

“Africa now has highly trained arbitrators and professionals who are being appointed to international arbitration panels across the world,” said Ufot, who was herself recently appointed as Presiding Arbitrator in an international arbitration involving Russian parties. “We are no longer spectators in global dispute resolution.”

The ICC Africa Conference is a premier platform for shaping conversations around international arbitration, investment, infrastructure, trade, and dispute resolution, says Joseph Siyaidon, a Regional Representative for Africa for the ICC Young Arbitration and ADR Forum (YAAF), and Chair of the Media and Publicity Sub-Committee for this year’s ICC Africa Conference. “It is a gathering of ideas, influence, innovation, and relationships that continue to define the evolution of dispute resolution on the continent,” says Siyaidon. “The 10th anniversary edition promises to be … a defining moment for Africa’s arbitration ecosystem.”

Following welcome and special remarks from dignitaries including Nigeria’s Attorney-General and Minister of Justice Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi SAN and the Chief Justice of Ghana, his Lordship, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, the main conference will open on the morning of Thursday, 4 June with a fireside chat with Claudia Salomon, the President of the ICC International Court of Arbitration on the topic of “Pioneering Excellence: Leadership, Legacy and the Road Ahead”. 

Salomon will be joined by Gbesoye Debo-Olujimi of Emadeb Energy Group and Akinwole II Omoboriowa of Genesis Energy Group, two of Africa’s leading business voices, for a high-level exchange covering shared insights, practical experience, and institutional perspectives informing the evolving landscape of international disputes. 

“I am delighted to take part in the 10th edition of the Africa Conference,” shared Salomon last month. “I look forward to engaging with colleagues and practitioners from across Africa and to discussing how we can collectively support the continued growth and excellence of arbitration in the region.” 

On the Friday afternoon, Salomon will chair another panel examining “The Revised ICC Arbitration Rules: What Changes, What Matters, What Comes Next”, with Isaiah Bozimo SAN of Detail Dispute Lawyers, a Vice President of the ICC International Court of Arbitration; Živa Filipič, Managing Counsel at the ICC International Court of Arbitration, and Funmi Roberts of Funmi Roberts & Co, a member of the ICC International Court of Arbitration, and past Chair of the 5th ICC Africa Conference. 

“It is no longer news that for several years, the ICC Commission on Arbitration & ADR has been working on amending the ICC Arbitration Rules,” says Roberts, noting the new Rules come into force on 1 June, just ahead of the 10th ICC Africa Conference in Lagos. “The arbitration community, including in-house counsel, is eagerly waiting for the revised Rules and I daresay that this panel taking place in my country will be the first opportunity for Claudia to physically present the revised ICC Arbitration Rules to the world after it comes into force. I'm glad to share the stage with her to do this.”

Speakers at the 10th ICC Africa Conference on International Arbitration, which will be held at the Lagos Continental Hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos, are a veritable who’s who of leading African and international arbitration figures, from officers, members, and counsel of the ICC International Court to senior African government figures, leading partners and rising stars from African and global law firms, Senior Advocates, in-house counsel, and founders and C-suite leaders of African businesses. 

This year’s conference has a great programme of events, says leading arbitrator Funke Adekoya SAN, and will be “a wonderful opportunity to exchange views on the state of arbitration with colleagues from across the continent and beyond”. 

Across the two days, expert panels will address topics including: 

• The Modern Bench: Evolving Judicial Support for International Arbitration; 

• Beneath the Surface: Resource Nationalism & Investor Risk (in French);

• Fast-Track Justice: Expedited Arbitration Eight Years On;

• Professional Standing in International Arbitration: Visibility, Credibility & Opportunity; 

• Clicks, Codes and Conflicts: Arbitrating Disputes in the Digital Economy; 

• PPPs, Energy Transition and Infrastructure Disputes: De-risking Africa’s Mega-Projects; 

• Geopolitics and International Arbitration: Navigating Risks in a Shifting Global Landscape; and

• Precision and Principle in a Tech‑driven Arbitration Landscape

“Across the continent, judiciaries are recalibrating their relationship with arbitration through updated frameworks, institutional reform and consistent court assistance,” says Achere Cole, former CEO of the Lagos Multi-Door Courthouse, who will chair the panel discussing ‘The Modern Bench’ and evolving judicial support. “However, the gaps between policy and practice remain real, and the stakes for parties, counsel, and the credibility of the African arbitration ecosystem are significant.”

In addition to the main programme, a 10th anniversary Gala Dinner will be held on the Thursday evening, and a ICC YAAF Africa Chapter Conference will be held late on the Friday afternoon, followed by a ICC YAAF: 10th Anniversary Dance Party. 

For more information on the ICC Africa Conference, including last chance registration, visit here.