Nigeria urges UN to reform international investment arbitration laws

Nigeria is calling for the United Nations to lead reforms in the international investment dispute-resolution framework to protect national sovereignty. Speaking at the Chief Legal Advisors Forum (CLAF) 2026 in Singapore, Attorney-General and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi argued that the current Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) system can undermine the interests of states and taxpayers.

Fagbemi cited Nigeria’s experience in a massive legal battle with Process and Industrial Developments Ltd. (P&ID) as a primary motivator for reform. He noted that in the P&ID case, damages were calculated using compound interest, which could have resulted in a multi-billion dollar liability capable of crippling the Nigerian economy.

Nigeria is advocating for a system that strengthens domestic courts rather than bypassing them, and calls for greater transparency, consistency in arbitral reasoning, and predictability in how damages are calculated. To address these issues domestically, the Nigerian government has formed a committee of experts to review its bilateral investment treaties and has reformed its national Arbitration Act.