Nigeria’s Ngozi Okojo-Iweala becomes WTO’s first African and Female Leader

Nigeria’s Candidate Ngozi Okojo-Iwealahas has been confirmed as the new Director-General World Trade Organization making history as first Woman and first African to hold the top position. 

Madam Ngozi in her Acceptance speech said that getting a trade deal at the next major ministerial meeting would be a “top priority added that “There is a need for deep wide ranging reforms but the reforms will not be easy, because we also have an issue of lack of trust among members which has built up overtime, not just between US and China, US and EU as many people thought, but also between Developing and Developed country members, and we need to work through that  if we are to achieve the reforms”.

She also urged members to reject vaccine nationalism, according to a delegate attending the closed-door meeting and stress the need to address the issue on how recover fully and rapidly from devastating COVID-19 pandemic.

“I think first and foremost we need to focus on the issue of covid-19 and what WTO can do to contribute to solutions it need to work with WHO with all the organisations that are trying to accelerate supplies and vaccines to poor countries, the WTO can look at export restrictions provisions from members on how it can lift them and be very transparent about them making  them temporary so that there will a free flow of goods”.she said in a virtual interview immediately after the confirmation”, she noted.

Ngozi, a two times finance minister in Nigeria and its first woman foreign minister, saw of eight rival candidates for the role. When she takes up her new post on Mar 1, she will become the first woman and the first African to lead the WTO. Her renewable term will run until Aug 31, 2025.