The Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Bangladesh International Arbitration Centre to help its members secure services from the centre.

During the signing ceremony at the BIAC secretariat in Dhaka on Thursday, Muhammad A (Rumee) Ali, chief executive officer of the BIAC, explained the centre's institutional ADR services under its own rules of arbitration and mediation to help resolve commercial disputes outside courts.

He said that ADR is an international practice that allows disputes to be resolved in a cost-effective, confidential and neutral manner, said the chamber in a press release. 

DCCI President Shams Mahmud said that arbitration and mediation are useful tools of commercial dispute resolution and the members of the chamber would get the benefits of the mechanisms through the institutional support of the BIAC.

Mahmud stressed the need for promoting ADR mechanism among the business community. "ADR would help small and medium enterprises to a great extent in quick dispensation of disputes originated from business contracts."

BIAC Director M A Akmall Hossain Azad and DCCI Acting Secretary-General DCCI Afsarul Arifeen signed the document. Under the agreement, the DCCI will recommend the BIAC as a forum for arbitration and mediation to its members.

Both parties will also exchange technical assistance for conducting mediation and arbitration proceedings. They will plan and implement joint programmes like seminars, webinars, workshops, training and consultations to promote the BIAC as a platform for institutional ADR.  DCCI Senior Vice President N K A Mobin was present during the signing ceremony.