​The 23rd Congress of the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA) was held on May 8-11 at the Swami Vivekananda International Convention Centre in Mauritius. The Congress is the largest regular conference devoted exclusively to international arbitration and draws practitioners and academics from all regions of the world. The theme this year was “International arbitration and the rule of law: contribution and conformity.” ICSID Secretary-General Meg Kinnear participated in the conference both as a moderator and as a Vice-President of the ICCA Governing Body.

The conference was opened by a keynote speech from Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General Emeritus of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Dr ElBaradei addressed a number of current issues in international arbitration, pointing out some of the new trends in the field and highlighting certain areas to be addressed in the coming years.

On May 9, 2016, Judge Abdelqawi Yusuf, Vice-President of the International Court of Justice, spoke about the importance of the arbitral tradition in Africa and the need to ensure greater participation by African counsel and arbitrators in arbitrations affecting African jurisdictions. On the same day, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon addressed the audience urging participants to use arbitration and other means of peaceful dispute resolution to contribute to global conflict resolution and a future with dignity for all. In the following sessions participants discussed topics as varied as the treatment of corruption in international arbitration, practical strategies from arbitrators, and a survey of practice in various African jurisdictions. ICSID Secretary-General Meg Kinnear then moderated a multi-disciplinary panel of experts from the United States, Bahrain and China discussing the extent to which international arbitration fosters economic development. Further information on the conference can be found on the ICCA website.

 

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UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, with the Rt. Hon. Sir Anerood Jugauth QC, Prime Minister of the Republic
 of Mauritius; Meg Kinnear, ICSID Secretary-General; Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General Emeritus
of the International Atomic Energy Agency; the Hon. Sudarshan Bhadain, Minister of Financial Services, Good
Governance and Institutional Reforms; and Mr. Salim Moolan QC. Photo by Alice Ramsay, PCA. May 8, 2016.