The Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame has called for a reform of laws governing arbitration and the institution of civil claims against the state.Speaking at the conference of the public sector lawyers in Accra, on November 5, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice cautioned that if not managed properly, arbitral claims made against the government from arbitrations can cripple the economy."There are certain glaring dangers that I think arbitration portends for Ghana and the developing world which seem to be overlooked.
Whilst arbitration is touted to assure neutrality, privacy, and efficiency in the adjudication of disputes, arbitral claims filed against the government, if not diligently managed, tend to collapse the entire Ghanaian economy.
A single arbitral claim, if successful can bring the economy of a developing country like Ghana, to its knees," he intimated to a room filled with President Akufo-Addo and public sector lawyers.Godfred Dame posited that in a space of four years, arbitral claims against Ghana amounted to over $9billion.
He explained that a possible collapse of the country's economy was averted following the defense by his office.Additionally, Dame cited a domestic arbitral claim which he said upon successful defense, had warded off GHC10trillion."In point of fact, over the past four years, the value of arbitral claims against the Republic has been over US$9Billion.