(Photo by Elisabetta Villa/Getty Images for TIME)
History in Motion as First African Woman Set to Head the WTO
Nigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is set to become the first African woman ever to be at the helm of the World Trade Organisation in it's entire 25-year history.
Nigeria's Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is reportedly set to become the head of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). This comes after South Korea's Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee, who was also a finalist for the top WTO position, announced that she planned to withdraw from the race this past Friday. Hence, as the only remaining finalist, and with the recently-elected Biden-Harris administration having endorsed her candidacy, Okonjo-Iweala, will become both the first African and first woman to ever helm the WTO in its 25-year history.
<span></span><p><a href="https://www.okayafrica.com/muslim-ban-ends-with-joe-biden/" target="_blank"><strong><em>READ: President Joe Biden Ends Trump's Muslim Travel Ban</em></strong></a><strong></strong></p><span></span><p>In September of last year, Kenyan Sports, Culture and Heritage Minister, <strong>Amina Chawahir Mohamed</strong>, and <strong>Okonjo-Iweala</strong> were <a href="https://www.okayafrica.com/african-women-political-leaders-make-wto-candidacy/" target="_blank">selected as the top candidates</a> for the director-general position for the WTO. They were the only two African women in the running at the time. Okonjo-Iweala's candidacy, however, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/05/business/ngozi-okonjo-iweala-world-trade-organization.html" target="_blank">had been blocked by the former Trump administration</a>, according to <strong><em>The</em></strong> <strong><em>New York Times</em></strong>. <strong><strong></strong></strong></p><p>According to a press statement by the office of the US trade representative, "Dr. Okonjo-Iweala brings a wealth of knowledge in economics and international diplomacy. She is widely respected for her effective leadership and has proven experience managing a large international organisation with a diverse membership." European Central Bank President, <strong>Christine Lagarde</strong>, also <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-08/meet-the-nigerian-corruption-cop-lagarde-expects-will-rock-wto" target="_blank">responded to Okonjo-Iweala's historic appointment</a> in a recent interview saying, "[Okonjo-Iweala] is this wonderful, soft, very gentle woman with an authentic approach to problems but, boy, under that soft glove there is a hard hand and a strong will behind it."</p><p><div class="preroll-video"></div><ora-player></ora-player></p><p>Okonjo-Iweala is certainly an excellent pick for the top post having already served twice as Nigeria's Finance Minister, having been a development economist at the World Bank for 25 years and the <a href="https://www.cgdev.org/expert/ngozi-okonjo-iweala" target="_blank">current chairperson of the board</a> for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation. Her appointment will follow that of Brazil's <strong>Roberto Azevêdo </strong>who resigned last year citing personal reasons and subsequently left the organisation without a successor. </p>
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