WTO To Appoint Okonjo Iweala Next Week

Former Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, is set to be appointed as its first female and first African to lead the World Trade Organization next week.

The organisation made this known in a statement titled, ‘WTO General Council to consider the appointment of next Director-General’, on its website on Tuesday.

The procedures for appointing the WTO Director-General are described in an official document.

The nomination period for the 2020 Director-General selection process ended on July 8, with eight candidates nominated by their respective governments.

The US had said it favored Yoo over okonjo Iweala because WTO is in dire need of reform and must be “led by someone with real, hands-on experience in the field”. The Donald Trump- led administration suggested that the race be reopened.

However, the US government led by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris expressed strong support for Okonjo-Iweala’s candidacy as WTO DG.