Nigeria Wins $6.2 Million Arbitration Case Against UK Tech Firm
Nigeria has secured a $6.2 million arbitration victory against European Dynamics UK Ltd over a disputed electronic government procurement contract.
Kamarudeen Ogundele, a special adviser in the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation, announced the development on Sunday.
He said the sole arbitrator, Funmi Roberts, delivered the final ruling on February 3. The decision dismissed all claims made by the United Kingdom-based technology company.
The victory saves Nigeria from a potential financial liability of $6.2 million, which is about N9.3 billion. The money included claims for alleged milestone completions, general damages, and settlement fees.
The dispute started over a contract to design, develop, and install a national e-procurement platform. The World Bank supported the project to improve transparency in federal procurement processes.
The Bureau of Public Procurement refused to pay the contractor. The bureau insisted that software projects are performance-based and payments must depend on verified results.
According to the government, the user acceptance test showed major functional errors and omissions in the software.
The arbitrator agreed with Nigeria. She ruled that the contractor was responsible for fixing the identified problems at no extra cost.
The tribunal also rejected the attempt by the vendor to merge different phases of the project for payment. The Nigerian legal team was led by Basil Udotai of Johnson & Wilner LLP.
During the formal presentation of the award to Lateef Fagbemi, the Attorney-General of the Federation, officials celebrated the outcome.
Adedokun, a representative at the event, noted that the vendor had previously defeated other African countries in similar court cases.
“Nigeria is the first to defeat them. We stood our ground against one of the best legal teams in the world because we believed in the expertise of our own Nigerian legal professionals,” Adedokun said.
Fagbemi praised the legal team and the leadership of the Bureau of Public Procurement for their courage.
“Nigeria is a country blessed with both natural and human resources. This win sends a clear message to the international community: Nigeria has resonated. It is no longer business as usual,” the minister said.
Related to this topic:
