Consensus Building Institute Partners with Corporate Mediators, Nigeria

In partnership with Corporate Mediators, Nigeria (led by Olajide Olagunju), CBI Senior Associate David Kovick led a 5-day training in Advanced Mediation Skills for lawyers from the Directorate for Citizen Rights, Ministry of Justice in Lagos State, Nigeria. The Directorate’s mandate is to ensure access to justice for all citizens in Lagos (one of Nigeria’s 36 federal states). As part of its work, the Directorate launched the Citizen Mediation Center several years ago, to promote the use of alternative dispute resolution.

Experienced mediators who have been with the Center for several years, new mediators recently posted to the Center, and other senior directors from other departments within the Ministry participated in the training. The workshop focused on the underlying principles of mediation that differentiate it from other forms of dispute resolution, and several of the core skills needed to mediate effectively—including in particular how to ensure that agreements are sustainable.

Plans are in place for a 2008 follow-up training on multi-stakeholder consensus-building. The Citizen Mediation Center hopes to assist with multi-stakeholder and community disputes that will continue to arise as a result of urban growth and economic development.