Abstract

Article 27:1 of the Protocol on the Rules and Procedures on Settlement of Disputes (Protocol) of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) permits state parties to resolve their trade disputes through arbitration in a forum with rules and procedures different from those of the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) of AfCFTA. Such a forum could be an ad hoc tribunal or an institutional one with its own rules and procedures. The question is, what happens if the rules and procedures of a non-DSB tribunal conflict with those of the DSB, such that the DSB's power to enforce a non-DSB award under the Protocol may be defeated? This is an important issue respecting AfCFTA's compatibility with pre-existing regional agreements. This contribution considers this issue within the context of the Organisation pour l'Harmonisation en Afrique du Droit des Affaires's (Organisation for the Harmonisation of Business Laws in Africa (OHADA) institutional arbitral rules, and the conflict resolution provisions of both AfCFTA and OHADA.

This paper will be part of the third TDM Special Issue on "The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA)". More information here www.transnational-dispute-management.com/news.asp?key=1809