QICCA was established in 2006 to provide a mechanism to resolve disputes between Qatari enterprises as well as national companies and their foreign counterparts.
The Qatar International Centre for Conciliation and Arbitration (QICCA) of Qatar Chamber received cases amounting to QAR 3bn (around $824m) in 2023 alone.
QICCA revealed the figures in a statement on Saturday, where it highlighted last year’s achievements, noting that most of the cases reported covered construction and contracting.
QICCA’s Secretary-General, Ibrahim Shahbik, underlined the effective role of commercial arbitration in Alternative Dispute Resolution, which he said the Qatari entity is able to carry out in a “speedy, specialised, and efficient” manner.
“Shahbik noted that the value of cases received by the centre last year amounted to approximately QR 3 billion, and that the most cases registered by the centre related to construction and contracting contracts,” the statement said.
Detailing the figures, Shahbik explained that facility provided arbitral awards for nearly 35 percent of the cases last year, with 40 percent others still not finalised.
Qatari arbitrators also presented more than 50 percent of those appointed to proceedings during the same year. The centre has 435 arbitrators, including 175 Qataris.
QICCA was established in 2006 to provide a mechanism to resolve disputes between Qatari enterprises as well as national companies and their foreign counterparts. The entity works in accordance with the United Nations Commission for International Trade Law.
It is also a full member of the International Federation for Commercial Arbitration Institutions (IFCAI), established in 1985 under the goal of maintaining relations between commercial arbitration institutions. IFCAI currently has 52 members.
“The centre is constantly holding training courses with the aim of preparing arbitrators through specialised courses in the field of arbitration in accordance with international standards…and conferences specialised in arbitration and mediation,” Shahbik said.
In 2022, the QICCA issued 19 out of 50 judgements in arbitration cases, covering 38 percent of total judgements issued during the year.
The figures were published by the Arbitration Affairs Department at the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), where it found 50 judgments were settled through arbitration during 2022. The figure represented a 16 percent increase in the completion rate of cases settled in comparison to 2021.
Similar to 2023, most of the areas of dispute were related to contracting and subcontracting contracts.
