Nigeria has recorded another victory in an international arbitration dispute with a foreign technology firm, European Dynamics UK Ltd.
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SADR.jpeg")
With the win, the country was saved from paying more than $6.2 million, which the British company claimed it was owed. The sum is broken down as $2.4 million for alleged milestone completions, $3 million in general damages, and $800,000 in settlement claims.
All the claims arising from an e-Procurement project managed by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) were dismissed by the sole arbiter, Funmi Roberts.
Nigeria’s legal team was led by Johnson & Wilner LLP, with Basil Udotai, Esq., serving as lead counsel during the arbitration at the International Centre for Arbitration and Mediation, Abuja.
Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Justice Minister Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) welcomed the ruling, describing it as “final and not subject to appeal.”
Nigeria in October 2023 won a historic legal victory against Process & Industrial Developments (P&ID), overturning an $11 billion+ arbitral award regarding a fraudulent 2010 gas deal.
Fagbemi, in a statement yesterday by Special Assistant to the President on Communication and Publicity (Office of the Attorney General of the Federation), Kamarudeen Ogundele, said that the latest verdict against European Dynamics signposts to insincere contractors that “It is no longer business as usual.”
“In the ruling, which is final and not subject to appeal, the tribunal dismissed the contractor’s claims in their entirety, relieving Nigeria of potential financial exposure estimated at over $6.2 million,” Ogundele quoted Fagbemi as saying.
European Dynamics UK Ltd had a contract with the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) for, among others, the design, development/customisation, supply, installation and maintenance of a national electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) system financed with support from the World Bank.
The project was aimed at strengthening transparency, accountability and efficiency across federal public procurement processes.
At a point, a dispute arose among parties in relation to the User Acceptance Test (UAT).
According to Ogundele’s statement, “The UAT carried out by the BPP identified significant functional deficiencies, including critical omissions and errors affecting system performance.”
Parties later submitted to an arbitration process, which found in favour of the country.
The statement reads in part: “Upon assuming office, the Director-General of the BPP, Dr Adebowale Adedokun, inherited a stalled technology project together with ongoing arbitration proceedings.
‘’European Dynamics UK Ltd had claimed approximately $2.4 million for alleged milestone completions, $3 million in general damages and an additional $800,000 settlement claims.
“Before Dr Adedokun’s appointment, there had been discussions around an out-of-court settlement. The Bureau, however, elected to continue with the arbitral process, maintaining that payments must be tied strictly to demonstrable value delivered.
“That led to the engagement of the specialised Nigerian legal team with expertise in technology contracting to review the technical and contractual issues in dispute.
“Central to the dispute was the User Acceptance Test (UAT). The UAT carried out by the BPP identified significant functional deficiencies, including critical omissions and errors affecting system performance.
“The bureau argued that, unlike conventional supply contracts where delivery may occur upon physical handover, software customisation projects are performance-validated.
It also argued that delivery crystallises only upon satisfactory UAT, confirming that the system operates in accordance with the technical requirements, statutory workflows, and operational environment for which it was commissioned.
The tribunal accepted Nigeria’s “position that these deficiencies fell within the vendor’s responsibility to remedy at no additional cost.
“It further held that the contractor, as the technical expert, bore the obligation to ensure that the delivered system complied with contractual requirements, irrespective of earlier technical documents that might have been approved by the BPP.
“The tribunal also found no evidence that the Bureau consented to the merger of multi-phase modules into a single phase.
“The tribunal also found that nothing in the contract suggests that such a merger is permissible, particularly given that payment is structured in phases, adding that the contractual framework was distorted.”
The AGF, according to Ogundele, commended the BPE Director-General for insisting on ensuring that the arbitral process was seen through, as against opting for out-of-court settlement.
He further quoted Fagbemi as saying: “Nigeria is a country blessed with both natural and human resources.
“This win sends a clear message to the international community: Nigeria has resonated. It is no longer business as usual.
“By standing up to European Dynamics, we have instilled courage in other African nations to protect their own resources.”
Fagbemi also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for supporting institutional strengthening within the justice sector. “We have a leader, mentor and father who can always watch our back. If he says leave it, we have no choice… he wants to nurture strong institutions,” the AGF said.
According to Ogundele and Adedokun, during a formal presentation of the award to Fagbemi, described the outcome as an important signal for public sector technology contracting.
Adedokun said: “This particular vendor has taken various African countries to court and won every single case. Nigeria is the first to defeat them.
“We stood our ground against one of the best legal teams in the world, because we believed in the expertise of our own Nigerian legal professionals.”
Ogundele said in the statement that the ruling underscores the importance of rigorous UAT, clear milestone definitions and expert-driven software delivery standards in government technology projects.
“The legal representative for the BPP encouraged the incorporation of lessons from the arbitration into ongoing e-procurement reforms to strengthen contract performance oversight and reduce the risk of future disputes,” he added.
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