For information only – not an official document
UNIS/L/319
24 August 2021
VIENNA, 24 August (UN Information Service) – With the deposit of the instrument of ratification at the UN Headquarters in New York, Iraq becomes the ninth State Party to the United Nations Convention on Transparency in Treaty-based Investor State Arbitration, also known as the "the Mauritius Convention on Transparency". Iraq joins Australia, Benin, Bolivia, Cameroon, Canada, Gambia, Mauritius and Switzerland as a State Party to the Convention. Additionally, 14 more countries have signed the Convention. It shall enter into force for Iraq on 20 February 2022.
The Mauritius Convention on Transparency aims at providing States and regional economic integration organizations with an efficient mechanism for making the UNCITRAL Rules on Transparency in Treaty-based investor-State Arbitration ("Rules on Transparency") applicable to investment treaties concluded before the Rules on Transparency entered into force on 1 April 2014. The Convention thus supplements pre-existing investment treaties with respect to transparency-related obligations. By becoming a party to the Convention, a State or regional economic integration organization is expressing its consent to apply the Rules on Transparency to investor-State arbitration initiated pursuant to investment treaties concluded before the Rules on Transparency entered into force.
The Rules on Transparency are a set of procedural rules that ensure transparency and public accessibility to treaty-based investor-State arbitration, the proceedings of which have traditionally been conducted behind closed doors. Together with the Rules on Transparency, the Mauritius Convention on Transparency takes into account both the public interest in such arbitrations and the interest of the parties to resolve disputes in a fair and efficient manner.
The Convention is open for signature, ratification, and accession by States and regional economic integration organizations.
Up-to-date information on the Convention and its status is available on the UNCITRAL website: uncitral.un.org.
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The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) is the core legal body of the United Nations system in the field of international trade law. Its mandate is to remove legal obstacles to international trade by progressively modernizing and harmonizing trade law. It prepares legal texts in a number of key areas such as international commercial dispute settlement, electronic commerce, insolvency, international payments, sale of goods, transport law, procurement and infrastructure development. UNCITRAL also provides technical assistance to law reform activities, including assisting Member States to review and assess their law reform needs and to draft the legislation required to implement UNCITRAL texts. The UNCITRAL secretariat is located in Vienna, Austria, and maintains a website at uncitral.un.org.
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For information, please contact:
José Angelo Estrella Faria
Principal Legal Officer and Head, Legislative Branch
UNCITRAL Secretariat
Email: joseangelo.estrella-faria[at]un.org
