Benin as a respondent in investment arbitration

Q: Is Benin party to the New York Convention?

Yes, since 14 August 1974, with no declarations listed.

Last checked: 22 October 2026 · By country

The ICSID Convention entered into force for Benin on 14 October 1966 and the New York Convention on 14 August 1974 ^1,2. The ICSID case search lists one case with Benin as respondent, brought by Teyliom International and others in 2020. ICSID records that the tribunal rendered its award on 22 July 2026 ^3,4. Outside ICSID, an ICC tribunal awarded Securiport US$95 million, and a French court refused to set the award aside, as reported by Global Arbitration Review ⁶.

ICSID Convention: Signed 10 September 1965, ratified 6 September 1966, in force 14 October 1966 ¹
New York Convention: Accession 16 May 1974, in force 14 August 1974 ²
New York Convention declarations: None listed by UNCITRAL ²
ICSID cases as respondent: 1, Teyliom International and others, ARB/20/24, concluded ^3,4
Notable non-ICSID case: Securiport, ICC award of US$95 million as reported ⁶
Status checked: 22 October 2026 ³

Treaty and convention status

Benin signed the ICSID Convention on 10 September 1965 and ratified it on 6 September 1966. It entered into force for Benin on 14 October 1966 ¹.

Benin acceded to the New York Convention on 16 May 1974, with effect from 14 August 1974 ². The UNCITRAL status page lists no reciprocity or commercial declaration for Benin ².

ICSID case: Teyliom v. Benin

The ICSID case search returned one case with Benin as respondent on 22 October 2026: Teyliom International and others v. Republic of Benin, ARB/20/24 ³. ICSID registered it on 23 July 2020. The claimants invoked Benin's Investment Law of 1990 and Investment Law of 2020, and ICSID describes the subject as a construction project ⁴.

ICSID records that the tribunal rendered its award on 22 July 2026 and lists the case as concluded ⁴. The ICSID page lists no published decisions. The result and any amount were not found in the sources opened for this page ⁴.

In a statement of 18 December 2024, Teyliom said it had started ICSID arbitration against Benin and called the destruction of the Hotel Noom Cotonou arbitrary ⁵. It said a judgment of 23 November 2021 by a Benin correctional chamber against two of its managers had never been notified to them and was not enforceable ⁵. No statement by the government of Benin on the arbitration was found for this page.

Securiport: an ICC award

Securiport, a US airport security company, brought ICC arbitration against Benin over an airport security contract ⁶. As reported by Cosmo Sanderson for Global Arbitration Review on 12 November 2020, the tribunal awarded US$95 million and a French court refused to set the award aside ⁶.

Benin alleged that the contract was procured through corruption. The court rejected that allegation, as reported ⁶. This site's case record sets out the later criminal proceedings in Benin and the status of payment.

Enforcement and payment

No source opened for this page says that Benin has paid the Securiport award or any sum under the Teyliom award ^4,6.

Common questions

How many ICSID cases has Benin faced?

One. The ICSID case search lists Teyliom International and others v. Benin, ARB/20/24, as the only case with Benin as respondent ³.

When was the Teyliom award issued?

ICSID records that the tribunal rendered its award on 22 July 2026 ⁴.

Did a French court uphold the Securiport award against Benin?

Yes, as reported by Global Arbitration Review on 12 November 2020. The court refused to set the award aside and rejected Benin's corruption allegation ⁶.

Is Benin party to the New York Convention?

Yes, since 14 August 1974, with no declarations listed ².

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Sources

Securiport v Benin
ICC award of January 2019 against Benin over the Cotonou airport security contract, the French ruling on corruption, and Benin's criminal case.
The corruption defence in arbitration
How states raise bribery against investor claims and awards, with what tribunals and courts decided in World Duty Free, Metal-Tech and Nigeria v P&ID.
Setting aside an arbitration award
The grounds and deadlines for asking a court to set aside an award under the UNCITRAL Model Law and the English Arbitration Act 1996, with a case example.
Commercial and investment arbitration compared
How contract-based commercial arbitration differs from investor-state arbitration on consent, review, transparency and enforcement, with official sources.