The President of the Africa Development Studies Centre (ADSC), Victor Oluwafemi, has described Nigeria’s recent arbitration victory over European Dynamics UK Ltd as a defining moment in the country’s procurement reform journey.
Nigeria had secured a landmark win after an arbitral tribunal dismissed in its entirety claims amounting to over $6.2 million brought against the country by the European technology firm in a dispute involving the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP).
The tribunal, presided over by Funmi Roberts at the International Centre for Arbitration and Mediation, Abuja, ruled in favour of Nigeria, relieving the country of potential financial exposure estimated at approximately N9.3 billion.
Reacting to the development, Oluwafemi congratulated the Director-General of the BPP, Dr Adebowale Adedokun; the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN); and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a governance statement beyond a legal win.
“This decisive outcome is not merely a legal victory. It is a declaration of institutional discipline and contractual courage,” he said
In a statement issued on Monday, Olufemi said at a time when international contractors often assume African institutions would capitulate under technical pressure, Nigeria demonstrated maturity and fiduciary resolve by insisting that public funds must be tied strictly to verified performance.
Central to the dispute was the User Acceptance Test (UAT) conducted by the BPP on a national electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) system financed with support from the World Bank.
The UAT identified significant functional deficiencies in the software, with the bureau maintaining that payment could not crystallise until performance was validated in line with contractual requirements.
Oluwafemi noted that the tribunal’s affirmation of the primacy of performance validation reinforces a fundamental procurement principle: value must be delivered before value is paid for.
“For years, procurement systems in many developing economies have been vulnerable to inflated milestone claims and weak enforcement of performance benchmarks. This ruling resets that trajectory,” he stated.
He commended Adedokun for resisting earlier settlement discussions and opting to continue with the arbitral process, describing the decision as leadership anchored on fiduciary responsibility rather than convenience.
The ADSC president also praised the coordination between the BPP, the Office of the Attorney-General and Nigerian legal practitioners, noting that the country’s legal team proved that domestic expertise can prevail against top-tier international representation.
He urged the Federal Government to leverage the momentum from the victory to institutionalise reforms in public sector contracting, including mandatory performance-validated digital milestones, strengthened e-procurement oversight, independent technical audit layers and clearer modular governance structures in technology projects.
“This should mark the beginning of a national procurement renaissance. Nigeria did not simply win a case; Nigeria strengthened its institutions, protected public resources and restored confidence in public accountability,” Oluwafemi added.
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