At the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) Court and International Arbitration Centre (IAC), 75 percent of arbitrators handling civil and commercial disputes are women, nearly double the rate seen in many other countries. Experts note that gender diversity in international arbitration proceedings fosters foreign investors’ trust in Kazakhstan’s justice system. Disputes at the AIFC Court and the International Arbitration Centre (IAC) are resolved with high standards of rule of law. In general, Kazakhstan provides equal opportunities for all individuals involved in judicial and arbitration proceedings, as was discussed by participants of a special conference held as part of Astana Finance Days in the capital. Prominent judges, mediators, and arbitrators from the U.S., China, and European and Asian countries highlighted the importance of diversity and inclusion in arbitration.
«We have been operating as a
court and an arbitration center of the AIFC for just over 6.5 years, and we
have finished now and enforced more than 3,300 cases. That is a world record
literally. No other international financial center like ours in Kazakhstan has
achieved this number of cases. We have 10 judges at the court, three of them
are women. That is a progress at the international judicial level,» said
Christopher Campbell-Holt, Registrar and Chief Executive of the AIFC Court and IAC.
