In a major change for the WTO, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the only contender for the post of Director-General of the WTO. This announcement is significant for Okonjo-Iweala, who is occupying this position currently, and for the WTO as it seeks to overcome the current challenges in the international trade environment.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala became the first female and the first African to head the WTO on February 15, 2021. Her appointment has been hailed as a success in terms of gender and geographical diversity in world affairs. Okonjo-Iweala has a strong academic background in economics and development and extensive experience at the WTO, having been Minister of Finance, Nigeria, and a Managing Director, World Bank.
Her leadership has been characterized by efforts to strengthen and transform the WTO to meet newer generation trade challenges, digital trade, trade for sustainable development, and disruption of the COVID-19 to trade value chains. As she tries to secure a second term of office, she remains unwavering to these issues of concern.
On September 16, 2024, Okonjo-Iweala expressed her readiness to run for the second term as Director General for another four years. This announcement was made as the WTO started processes to recruit a new director-general with member countries to make their nominations by 8 November 2024.
According to the WTO statement made by Petter Olberg, the chairperson of the WTO’s General Council, there was no reception of more nominations to the position by the set deadline, thus cementing Okonjo-Iweala as the only possible candidate for the position.
Olberg remarked;
“As provided in the procedures for the appointment of Directors-General (WT/L/509), I am to communicate to members the list of the nominees for the post of Director-General in line with the requirements of these rules as soon as the nomination period is closed.”
This procedural openness emphasizes the significance of the selective procedure at the WTO, where member countries are notified.
As she sets to kick off a new term, Okonjo-Iweala has laid down clear goals and aspirations for the WTO with a focus on sustainability, inclusiveness, and durability. Among them, she affirmed the importance of the organization to respond to the new reality of the post-Covid-19 world, digital trade, and debate on the protection of the environment.
In her own words, she has said;
“It is therefore important for us to join our efforts to make trade more equitable and ready for it in the future”
The fact that Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is now the only person to be considered for the post of WTO Director-General is a symbol of her leadership and the trust other member states have in her to steer the organization through challenging waters. She has had her first term, which has laid down an important foundation, and as she prepares to go for a second term, she will definitely receive a lot of attention throughout the world.
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As we look forward to her further leadership, it is evident that Okonjo-Iweala’s role will be central in mapping the course of future trade relations to make them beneficial for all nations, especially those that have been locked out in the current global arrangement.
