WASHINGTON – The World Trade Organization officially selected Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a Nigerian economist and former finance minister, on Monday to be its next leader. The first woman and the first African woman to serve as general director, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala will take office on March 1 for a renewable term that expires on August 31, 2025.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala said in a statement that she was honored to have been selected and would work with member countries of the organization to address health issues caused by the pandemic and “make the global economy work again”.
“A strong WTO is vital if we are to recover completely and quickly from the devastation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Dr. Okonjo-Iweala. “Our organization faces many challenges, but by working together we can make the WTO stronger, more agile and better adapted to today’s realities.”
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala takes command of the WTO at a particularly difficult time for the global trade body, which was created in 1995 to help resolve trade disputes, draft new trade rules and stimulate the flow of goods and services across the world. world.
Many critics of the organization say it has failed on several of these fronts, including its failure to promote new trade negotiations and to adequately control China’s unfair economic behavior. In a time of increasing global protectionism and deep uncertainty for the global economy caused by the pandemic, the organization’s system of dispute settlement also remains paralyzed after the challenges of the Trump administration.
In an acceptance speech given by video link to an almost empty meeting room at the WTO headquarters in Lake Geneva, Switzerland, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala acknowledged these challenges, but gave a hopeful note on how her leadership could help to build a stronger, more relevant environment and a more inclusive business system.
“It has been a long and difficult road, full of uncertainties, but now it is the dawn of a new day and the real work can begin,” she said. “The challenges facing the WTO are numerous and complicated, but they are not insurmountable.”
At a news conference with reporters on Monday, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala said that her initial priorities would include working with other international organizations to create lasting rules to respond to pandemics and progress in two negotiations on fishing subsidies and digital commerce.
The WTO General Council, which includes representatives from all 164 member countries of the group, agreed at a meeting on Monday that Dr. Okonjo-Iweala should be the next director general. As with many of its other decisions, the organization was asked to reach a consensus on the nomination, which means that no member country could object to the choice.
The entity’s former general director, Roberto Azevêdo do Brasil, left office in August after announcing in May that he would leave a year earlier. WTO members then considered eight candidates for the job.
In October, most countries had announced their support for Dr. Okonjo-Iweala. But Trump administration officials continued to express support for South Korea’s Commerce Minister Yoo Myung-hee, saying he believed she had more business experience, a stalemate that left the organization without a leader for several months.
After the Biden government took office, Ms. Yoo withdrew her candidacy and the United States announced its support for Dr. Okonjo-Iweala.