In the past few years, Pakistan has been involved in
international arbitral proceedings in connection with a couple of
important international commercial and investment disputes
including the Reko Diq and the Rental Power Plants (RPP) cases. One
striking aspect of the discussions and analyses of these
proceedings has been the glaring lack of even elementary knowledge
of the substantive and procedural issues related to international
arbitration. In view of the high stakes involved in these
proceedings, it is imperative to have an institutional mechanism in
Pakistan to build capacity and raise awareness about the importance
of international arbitration. In furtherance of this goal, the idea
of having such a mechanism was brought to fruition last month at
the formal inauguration of the Lahore-based Center for
International Investment and Commercial Arbitration (CIICA).
