By Saidu Jalloh, Reporter D.S
The Deputy Mines Minister Umaru Napoleon Koroma used recent mining reforms as a live case study during a specialist session on international arbitration, arguing that legal and regulatory changes are key to attracting responsible investment and settling disputes.
Koroma addressed 30 legal practitioners from 25 African countries at the Africa Arbitration Academy, hosted by Herbert Smith Freehills. The cohort included private sector lawyers and state counsel gathered for advanced training in commercial arbitration.
The session blended doctrine with practice, using mining-related disputes to show how arbitration frameworks cut across borders and mesh with national reform efforts.
Koroma told participants that the country’s overhaul of the mining sector centers on transparency, modernized regulation, and stronger investor safeguards. “The goal is to ensure mining contributes meaningfully to national development while meeting international standards,” he said. Panelists stressed that credible legal reforms, backed by effective arbitration mechanisms, reduce prolonged disputes and make jurisdictions more appealing to serious investors.
The Deputy Minister’s London engagement is part of a wider outreach. He is scheduled to appear at a town hall with the Vice President and later speak at the Diaspora Investment Conference on Friday, where mining will again feature prominently.
Officials said the engagements aim to update both domestic and diaspora stakeholders on new investment opportunities and protections introduced in the sector.
The delegation credited Mines Minister Julius Mattai for leading the reform drive and thanked President Julius Maada Bio for the opportunity to serve.
The Herbert Smith Freehills session underscored the country’s push to project itself internationally as a stable, transparent, and competitive destination for mining investment.
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