RICS dispute resolution service to host training in ghana

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Dispute Resolution Service (DRS) will be delivering its globally recognised Analytical Commercial Restorative Expert (ACRE) Accredited Mediator Training Programme for the first time in the country.

The course will be held on 21-23 and 25-26 August 2016 and is specially designed for professionals working in the built environment sector. Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) is becoming increasingly relevant to the built environment sector in Africa. Throughout the full real estate life cycle, whether in planning, construction, real estate development, or asset management, more and more professionals are getting involved in ADR.

Professionals need the skills and competencies to help their businesses or their clients avoid disputes or get them resolved as quickly and inexpensively as possible, says RICS, which promotes and enforces the highest professional qualifications and standards in the development and management of land, real estate, construction and infrastructure at the global level.

RICS ACRE Accredited Mediator Training prepares delegates to mediate the most complex of disputes to the highest of standards and teaches negotiation skills in a practical setting and is aimed at senior members of the construction, land and real estate industries, members of government departments, local authorities involved in the administration of land property matters and legal practitioners who specialise in these areas. The training is robust, practical and demanding, and delegates who successfully complete Module One and Module Two of the course will become an RICS Accredited Mediator.

RICS has built upon its traditional, facilitative mediation service to develop a new, robust and evaluative training programme – ACRE Mediation. The approach is analytical - it helps parties to analyse the circumstances, law and evidence, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of their case to empower them to make pragmatic and viable settlement decisions. It is also commercial as it encompasses wide commercial as well as narrow legal realities to provide a flexible settlement, which courts or arbitration cannot. It is also restorative and focusses on restoring the business relationship between parties, proceedings are completely confidential to limit any further damage. Finally, it is expert - with many years' experience and expertise in the field of dispute, our mediators help parties to reach a common-sense settlement, or to narrow the issues in dispute, reducing court or arbitration costs. The extensive "been there, done that" experience of our mediators equips them to advise and guide the parties through the mediation process.

Benjamin Yaw Manu, RICS Regional Manager for West Africa states: “Our aim is to support efforts at improving the efficacy of ADR mechanisms in Ghana since the promulgation of the ADR Act (Act 798, 2010), which seeks to promote the settlement of disputes through arbitration, mediation and other voluntary procedures. RICS are delighted to host this first ever international accredited mediation training programme for the built environment in Ghana.’’

The training will be led by Dr John Fletcher, Global Director of Dispute Resolution Services at RICS, who said: “We are delighted to be hosting this training in Ghana. The growing interest in alternative dispute resolution is allowing RICS to establish ourselves across Africa as a leading authority in the sector. We have delivered our training in the UK and internationally for several years, and I look forward to meeting and working with delegates in Ghana.”

RICS is working globally to raise awareness of mediation and to promote the use of mediation in built environment disputes, and the ACRE Accredited Mediator training programme is delivered across the world. Delegates in the UK, Poland, Singapore and South Africa have been impressed with the quality and delivery of the course, and have found the expert knowledge of the trainers to be hugely valuable.

David Levis, Project Services Manager at Hiap Seng Engineering Ltd, Singapore says “Our trainer’s teaching was of the highest standard, but it was his wide knowledge and sheer enthusiasm for the subject that made it possible for him to hold the students’ attention throughout an intensive week.”

RICS DRS is the oldest and largest built environment-specific dispute resolution service provider in the world. DRS has provided alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services for 40 years and has made more than 200,000 dispute resolution appointments across the world during this time. The services include: high quality training, qualifications and accreditation in dispute avoidance, resolution, representation and management, accredited panels of the best dispute resolution practitioners in the built environment, providing a professional and quality assured appointment system to stakeholders across the built environment as well as advice and assistance to governments, judiciaries, property professionals and consumers on the development and provision of ADR services in the land, property, construction and related sectors.