The Ghana Bar Association has pledged its full support to the newly established Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre in efforts to strengthen Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) practice for enhanced justice delivery in Ghana.
According to the Association, the Bar stands to benefit immensely from a well-regulated, standardised, and efficient ADR system, making collaboration between the Bar and the Centre essential for the growth of the sector.
Mrs Efua Ghartey, President of the GBA, gave the assurance when the Executive Secretary of the ADR Centre, Dr Francis Korankye-Sakyi, paid a courtesy call on the leadership of the Association in Accra on Wednesday.
“The Bar is really a key beneficiary of ADR, and we will offer the best support we can. We want this to become a flagship Centre,” Mrs Ghartey stated, adding that the Association would not hesitate to support the Centre in areas such as capacity building and professional development.
She explained that while many lawyers are increasingly embracing ADR mechanisms, particularly mediation and arbitration, there remains a strong demand for assurance of impartiality, fairness, professionalism, and quality service delivery.
Mrs Ghartey expressed confidence that the establishment of the ADR Centre presents an opportunity to create a credible and standardised ADR framework capable of inspiring public trust and confidence.
“It is important to have common standards to avoid a mismatch between service expectations and outcomes,” she stressed.
She lauded the establishment of the Centre and commended Dr Korankye-Sakyi for his leadership and acknowledgement of the critical role the GBA would play in the success of ADR development in Ghana.
Mrs Victoria Nana Ama Barth, Vice President of GBA, also observed that the ADR Centre has enormous potential to transform justice delivery in the country.
She called for intensified public education and stakeholder engagement on the mandate of the Centre to ensure broad-based participation in the advancement of the ADR industry.
Dr Korankye-Sakyi, for his part, thanked the GBA for its commitment and support, stating that strong collaboration with the Bar would help position the ADR Centre as a centre of excellence for ADR practice in Africa.
He assured the Association that one of the Centre’s core priorities as a regulatory body would be the issuance of Practice Directives to ensure standardisation across all ADR mechanisms and institutions.
He further disclosed that the Centre would publish a register of certified ADR practitioners to ensure that only professionally trained and accredited individuals provide ADR services in Ghana.
On funding, Dr Korankye-Sakyi noted that the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act, 2010 (Act 798) provides for the establishment of an ADR Fund to support the activities of the Centre and the development of the sector generally.
He also noted that the Centre is in the process of developing a Legislative Instrument (LI) to operationalise provisions of the ADR Act, and would seek the assistance of the GBA in the drafting process.
The meeting forms part of the ADR Centre’s broader stakeholder engagement efforts aimed at building strategic partnerships to strengthen regulation, professionalism, and access to effective dispute resolution mechanisms in Ghana.
