Today marks seven years since the Singapore Convention on Mediation opened for signature.
When the Convention opened for signature on 7 August 2019, Turkey was among the states that signed on day one. The ratification process was completed in 2021, and Turkey became the Convention's eighth State party. This early participation was not a coincidence. Because the biggest gap in international commercial mediation was never a lack of negotiation culture; it was the ability to enforce settlement agreements across borders with confidence.
The Real Problem the Convention Solved
One of the most important advantages international arbitration has held for decades has been the New York Convention. An arbitral award, wherever it was rendered, could be recognised and enforced in different countries around the world. Mediation had no equivalent safeguard.
Even when parties reached a settlement after months of negotiation, if the other side failed to meet its obligations in another country, a new lawsuit often had to be filed. This was one of the main reasons that limited the use of mediation, particularly in cross-border commercial disputes.
The Singapore Convention on Mediation filled exactly this gap. In State parties, commercial settlement agreements reached through mediation can now be enforced directly, without the need to file a new lawsuit.
What looks, at first glance, like a technical change is in fact a significant transformation. A settlement reached at the table no longer rests only on the parties' good faith; it now also rests on a safeguard provided by international law.
Seven Years On: From Where to Where?
When Turkey became a party to the Convention, the number of State parties stood at eight.
Today that number has reached twenty-two.
In the past year, Brazil, Kyrgyzstan, Oman, and Colombia became parties to the Convention, while Egypt and Azerbaijan also signed and are continuing their ratification processes.
This progression is not, in fact, surprising. The New York Convention showed a similar pattern of growth in its early years, and over time became one of the fundamental building blocks of international trade. The future of the Singapore Convention on Mediation will likewise be shaped by which major trading economies join in the years ahead.
The Real Question Has Changed
Seven years ago, the fundamental question was: can mediation become a genuine alternative in international trade?
Today, that question has largely been left behind.
The real issue now is not whether this possibility exists, but the extent to which companies, investors, and lawyers are able to make use of it.
Adding mediation provisions to contracts no longer offers the parties only a path to negotiation; it also provides a safeguard that is enforceable across borders.
The Quiet Power of a Text
In international law, some texts do not create major change all at once.
They show their effect over years, through growing trust and participation.
The Singapore Convention on Mediation, in its seventh year, represents exactly this. The steady rise in the number of State parties shows that international commercial mediation is acquiring an ever stronger legal infrastructure.
Perhaps what is being marked today is not only the seventh anniversary of a convention, but the step-by-step construction of a new era in the resolution of international commercial disputes.
Sources
1. UNCITRAL, Oman ratifies the Singapore Convention on Mediation, 2026 - uncitral.un.org.
2. UNCITRAL, Kyrgyzstan becomes 20th State party to the Singapore Convention on Mediation, 2025 - uncitral.un.org.
3. UNCITRAL, Egypt signs the Singapore Convention on Mediation, 2026 - uncitral.un.org.
4. International Mediation Institute, Brazil Ratifies the Singapore Convention on Mediation, September 2025 - imimediation.org.
5. International Mediation Institute, Japan Accedes to the Singapore Convention, October 2023 - imimediation.org.
6. UNIS Vienna, Turkey ratifies the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, 2021 - unis.unvienna.org.
7. Singapore Convention on Mediation, Jurisdiction Profiles - singaporeconvention.org.