Zambia ADR Bill 2026, What the Draft Alternative Dispute Resolution Law Could Mean for Businesses

In February 2026, the Zambia Law Development Commission formally handed over the Draft Alternative Dispute Resolution Bill to the Government, marking an important step in Zambia’s continuing reform of dispute resolution law. The handover took place on 25 February 2026 during Lusaka Arbitration Week, and the ZLDC described the Bill as the culmination of a reform process that began with a review of the Arbitration Act No. 19 of 2000 before expanding into a proposed unified ADR framework.

For businesses operating or contracting in Zambia, the Bill is potentially significant. Public announcements and commentary indicate that it is intended to modernise arbitration, create a clearer statutory framework for mediation, and introduce additional dispute resolution mechanisms, including construction-related adjudication or dispute resolution processes. However, until the Bill is published, enacted, and any regulations or practice directions are issued, its precise provisions should be treated as subject to confirmation and possible amendment.

Quick primer: Zambia’s current ADR landscape

Zambia’s current arbitration regime is not a blank slate. Arbitration is principally governed by the Arbitration Act No. 19 of 2000, which repealed and replaced earlier arbitration legislation and adopted, with modifications, the 1985 UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration. The Act also provides for recognition and enforcement of New York Convention awards.

Although Zambia has a Model Law-based arbitration statute, that framework is now more than two decades old and does not reflect later international developments, including the 2006 UNCITRAL Model Law amendments on interim measures, emergency arbitration practice, and a consolidated statutory framework for mediation and adjudication.

The current Act does however contain important arbitration protections. For example, arbitral tribunals have power to order interim measures, including interim injunctions and other interim orders; the Act includes statutory confidentiality provisions for arbitration; it limits court intervention to circumstances provided by law; and it contains defined grounds for setting aside, recognising, and enforcing awards.

Mediation is more mixed. Zambia already has court-annexed mediation rules and a history of judicial support for mediation, including High Court and Subordinate Court mediation procedures. Court-annexed mediated settlements can have judgment-like effect once registered. However, private mediation has not had the same comprehensive statutory framework for process, mediator standards, confidentiality, and direct enforcement of settlement agreements.

The Judiciary has also continued to promote ADR in practice. Public reporting in March 2026 stated that 1,540 matters were referred to mediation in 2025 across the High Court and Subordinate Courts in Lusaka, Ndola, Kabwe and Livingstone, with 511 cases settled through ADR.

The reform also sits against a broader access-to-justice background. A World Bank assessment considered access to justice and ADR systems in Zambia, including the potential of ADR to support an overburdened formal court system. The Bill should therefore be viewed against the backdrop of World Bank, Judiciary, practitioner, and stakeholder calls for stronger ADR mechanisms.

What the Draft ADR Bill appears intended to reform

Publicly available summaries indicate that the Draft ADR Bill focuses on three broad areas: arbitration modernisation, a statutory mediation framework, and additional ADR mechanisms, including construction dispute resolution.

Arbitration reform: modernisation

The Bill appears to be intended to modernise Zambia’s arbitration framework and align it with widely accepted international standards. Zambia’s current law is based on the 1985 UNCITRAL Model Law. The significance of the Bill lies in the updating, consolidation, and possible expansion of Zambia’s existing arbitration regime.

Potential areas of reform include:

For businesses, the practical question is whether the reforms will make Zambia a more attractive arbitral seat for domestic, regional, and cross-border transactions. If the Bill strengthens procedural certainty, court support, interim relief, institutional supervision, and enforcement efficiency, it could make Lusaka a more credible choice for contracts involving Zambian parties, assets, or projects.

Statutory mediation framework for Zambia

The most practically significant part of the Bill may be the proposed statutory framework for mediation. Zambia already has court-annexed mediation, but private mediation remains less developed from a statutory enforcement perspective. Current commentary on Zambian mediation law notes that court-annexed mediation can result in settlements with the force and effect of a judgment, while private mediation settlements generally remain enforceable through ordinary contract principles unless converted into a consent judgment or similar enforceable instrument.

A comprehensive mediation framework could address several issues:

The Bill may create a clearer mechanism for recognising and enforcing private mediated settlement agreements, potentially including registration with the court.

Construction adjudication and other dispute resolution mechanisms

Public commentary from Lusaka Arbitration Week indicates that the Draft ADR Bill also addresses construction dispute resolution. This could be particularly important for Zambia’s infrastructure, mining, energy, and public-private partnership sectors, where payment disputes, delay claims, variations, and performance disputes can disrupt project cash flow.

Construction adjudication, if adopted, would provide a faster interim or binding dispute resolution mechanism for construction disputes. This would bring Zambia closer to jurisdictions that have used statutory adjudication or statutory support for construction dispute resolution to keep projects moving while preserving parties’ rights to final determination by arbitration or litigation.

Zambia’s proposed reform parallels regional reform efforts in Kenya.

Practical impact for businesses and contracting parties

The Draft ADR Bill may affect how businesses draft contracts, manage disputes, and choose dispute resolution forums.

Arbitration clauses: seat, rules, interim relief, and emergency relief

Many contracts involving Zambian parties currently choose foreign seats such as London, Johannesburg, or Singapore. Some parties do this for perceived neutrality, institutional familiarity, or procedural certainty. If the Bill modernises Zambia’s arbitration regime and improves confidence in local enforcement, parties may reassess whether Lusaka should be selected as the seat for Zambia-related contracts.

Businesses should review arbitration clauses for:

Mediation clauses and enforceability

Mediation clauses should be treated as more than aspirational language. If the Draft ADR Bill gives private mediation a clearer statutory footing, contractual mediation may become a more valuable pre-arbitration or pre-litigation step.

Businesses should consider mediation clauses that specify:

Confidentiality and court interaction

Zambia’s current Arbitration Act provides for confidentiality in arbitration and limits court intervention in Model Law terms. The Draft ADR Bill may nevertheless provide an opportunity to clarify the court-arbitration interface, modernise procedural support, and extend clearer confidentiality protections across mediation and other ADR processes.

Contract drafting checklist

Businesses do not need to wait until enactment before preparing. The safest approach is to update templates in a way that works under current law but is flexible enough to accommodate successor legislation.

1. Audit contracts involving Zambian counterparties, Zambian assets, Zambian governing law, or Zambia as the place of performance.
2. Identify clauses that refer to the repealed Arbitration Act, Cap. 40, the Arbitration Act No. 19 of 2000, or Zambian arbitration legislation generally, and add successor-legislation wording.
3. Decide whether Lusaka should remain, become, or be avoided as the arbitral seat depending on the contract’s risk profile.
4. Specify arbitration rules and an appointing authority.
5. Include emergency arbitrator wording, but qualify it by reference to applicable rules or applicable law.
6. Preserve the right to seek interim measures from the tribunal or a competent court.
7. Add mediation as a mandatory or optional escalation step, depending on the transaction.
8. State how mediated settlements will be documented and enforced.
9. Review construction contracts for potential adjudication readiness.
10. Assign someone to monitor the Bill’s progress through Parliament, commencement, regulations, and practice directions.

Note on sample clauses

The sample clauses below are illustrative only and should not be used without review and adaptation by qualified legal counsel. Appropriate wording will depend on the parties, transaction structure, governing law, seat of arbitration, applicable rules, sector, and the final form of any enacted ADR legislation.

 Sample commercial arbitration clause

Any dispute arising out of or in connection with this contract, including any question regarding its existence, validity, interpretation, performance, breach, or termination, shall be referred to and finally resolved by arbitration. The arbitration shall be conducted in accordance with the [UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules / LIAC Arbitration Rules / other specified rules] in force at the date of commencement of the arbitration. The seat of arbitration shall be Lusaka, Zambia. The language of the arbitration shall be English. The tribunal shall consist of [one / three] arbitrator[s].

The parties preserve the right to seek interim or conservatory measures from the arbitral tribunal or any competent court. To the extent permitted under the applicable rules or the laws of Zambia in force at the date of the request, either party may apply for emergency interim relief before constitution of the tribunal.

Sample mediation clause

Before commencing arbitration, the parties shall first attempt in good faith to resolve the dispute through mediation. A party may initiate mediation by written notice to the other party. The mediation shall be conducted in accordance with the mediation provisions of the laws of Zambia in force at the date of the mediation, or, if no applicable statutory framework is then in force, in accordance with the mediation rules of [specified institution].

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, the mediation shall be completed within 45 days of the mediator’s appointment. All communications, offers, admissions, documents, and materials produced for the mediation shall be confidential and without prejudice, except to the extent disclosure is required by law or necessary to enforce a settlement agreement.

Sample escalation clause

In the event of a dispute arising out of or in connection with this contract, the parties shall first attempt to resolve the dispute through good-faith negotiations between senior representatives within 14 days of written notice of the dispute.

If the dispute is not resolved by negotiation, it shall be referred to mediation in accordance with the mediation clause in this contract.

If the dispute is not resolved by mediation within the agreed period, or if a party fails to participate in the mediation process, either party may commence arbitration in accordance with the arbitration clause in this contract.

Sample successor legislation wording

Any reference in this contract to the Arbitration Act No. 19 of 2000, Cap. 40, or any arbitration or ADR legislation of Zambia shall include any amendment, re-enactment, replacement, successor statute, regulations, rules, or practice directions applicable to the dispute at the relevant time.

Compliance roadmap for businesses

Decision matrix: when to update ADR clauses

Enforcement and cross-border considerations

Zambian law already provides for recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards, including New York Convention awards. The current Act also provides that an arbitral award, irrespective of where it was made, shall be recognised as binding and enforced subject to the Act’s grounds for refusal.

The practical question is whether the Draft ADR Bill will make enforcement faster, clearer, and more predictable in practice. Businesses should continue to draft arbitration agreements carefully by selecting a clear seat, rules, appointing authority, language, number of arbitrators, and enforcement-friendly procedures.

Where contracts involve state entities or state-owned enterprises, parties should also consider whether sovereign immunity, public procurement rules, statutory approvals, or government-contracting requirements affect the dispute resolution clause.

Action checklist for in-house teams

Businesses with Zambian exposure should take the following steps now:

Conclusion

The Draft ADR Bill is a significant development for Zambia’s dispute resolution landscape, but it should be analysed carefully. Zambia already has a Model Law-based arbitration statute with provisions on interim measures, confidentiality, court intervention, award challenge, and enforcement. The real significance of the proposed reform lies in possible modernisation, consolidation, and expansion: a stronger arbitration framework, a clearer statutory basis for mediation, and new construction dispute resolution mechanisms.

For businesses, the immediate task is preparation rather than overreaction. Contract templates should be reviewed now, but final changes should be checked against the published Bill, the enacted Act, commencement provisions, and any implementing rules.

Need Legal Advice?

This article is not a substitute for legal advice. For advice on how Zambia’s proposed ADR reforms may affect your contracts, disputes, or business operations, please consult qualified Zambian counsel.

Sources / Further Reading

1. Zambia Law Development Commission, “Alternative Dispute Resolution Draft Bill Presented to the Government During Lusaka Arbitration Week.”
2. Zambia Monitor, “Zambia hands over ADR Bill to modernise arbitration, mediation framework.”
3. Arbitration Act No. 19 of 2000.
4. Zambia Monitor, “Alternative dispute resolution gains ground as Zambia Judiciary settles 511 cases through mediation in 2025.”
5. World Bank, “Assessment of Access to Justice and Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems.”
6. The Global Legal Post, “Zambia | Mediation Law Guide.”
7. Wyne & Associates, “Reflections from the Lusaka Arbitration Week 2026.”
8. UNCITRAL, “Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (1985), with amendments as adopted in 2006.”
9. UNCITRAL, “Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, New York, 1958.”

Disclaimer

This article is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. It is based on publicly available information and commentary on the Draft Alternative Dispute Resolution Bill as at the date of publication. The Bill has not yet been enacted, and its provisions may change during the legislative process or upon the issuance of regulations, rules, or practice directions.

Readers should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of this article without obtaining legal advice from qualified Zambian counsel or other appropriate professional advisers. No lawyer-client relationship is created by this article.