LEAT files Amicus Brief in Tanzanian Failed Water Privatization Case Pending Before ICSID Tribunal

On the 26th March 2007 a coalition of NGOs filed an amicus curiae brief (PDF, 167 KB) in the Biwater-Tanzania case pending before an ICSID Tribunal (an arbitration tribunal under the auspices of the World Bank.) The dispute concerns a controversy between the Tanzanian government and the British investor Biwater  concerning the provision of water services in Dar es Salaam from 2003 until 2005. The dispute emerged after Tanzanian government terminated the water operation contract in May 2005 with Biwater-Tanzania due to the fact that Biwater-Tanzania failed to live up to its contractual obligations of providing clean drinking water to millions of people in Dar es Salaam. Aggrieved, Biwater, the UK-based investor, sued and is demanding compensation under the UK-Tanzania Bilateral Investment Treaty.

The brief puts forward arguments as to the responsibilities of foreign investors under international investment agreements, particularly where investments implicate sensitive human rights or sustainable development objectives.

The submission was filed by the Lawyers' Environmental Action Team (LEAT), the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) , the Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP) , the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)  and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) . It was opposed by the British water company Biwater, but was supported by the Tanzanian government.

This dispute shows how problematic it is to include investment rules in trade and investment agreements, particularly if they include investor-state provisions, which allow investors to sue host governments in international tribunals. These types of provisions could find their way into Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), currently under negotiation. Governments must be encouraged to say "no" to investor-state provisions or investment provisions more generally.