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Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was confirmed Monday as director general of the World Trade Organization, becoming the first woman and the first African to head the world trade body.
Okonjo-Iweala was appointed by the WTO after the last rival candidate, South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee, withdrew from the race.
She will take office on March 1, initially for a term that runs until August 2025. Economist and former Nigerian finance minister, Okonjo-Iweala has enjoyed wide support from WTO members, including the European Union, China, Japan and Australia.
The United States, under the Trump administration, had favored Yoo.
‘Profound reforms’
The WTO was created in 1995 with the aim of promoting open trade for the benefit of all. It negotiates and administers the rules of international trade and attempts to resolve disputes between its 164 members.
But the organization has struggled to prevent trade disputes between member states, including the United States and China. The Geneva-based body has had no permanent director general since Roberto Azevêdo stepped down a year earlier than expected in August.
Okonjo-Iweala recognized the need for reform. It sounds exciting and intimidating at the same time. I look forward to the challenge… far-reaching reforms are needed to rename and reposition the organization, ”she said in an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.
Okonjo-Iweala said scaling up global efforts to fight Covid-19 was also a priority. One of the… main priorities that I have, which I am passionate about, is how can trade and the WTO play a bigger role in bringing the Covid-19 pandemic, both from the side health but also on the economic side, ”she told CNN.
Okonjo-Iweala said that while economic recovery depended on trade, solving public health problems also required “good trade.”
Okonjo-Iweala spent 25 years at the World Bank as a development economist, rising to the post of Managing Director.
She also chaired the board of directors of Gavi, which helps distribute coronavirus vaccines around the world, stepping down at the end of her tenure in December.
Responding to concerns that rich countries are not doing enough to share vaccines, Okonjo-Iweala said the WTO needs “rules that will allow access and fairness for vaccines, therapies and diagnostics .
“It’s a big problem for me, how can I find solutions to the current pandemic?” she said during the interview.
Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda, has expressed concern that developing countries are unable to access adequate vaccine supplies for their citizens.
“Rich and powerful nations have rushed to block the supply of several vaccine candidates,” Kagame said in a Guardian newspaper editorial on February 7. “
Worse still, some people accumulate vaccines and buy many more doses than they need. This leaves African countries and other developing countries far behind in the vaccine queue, or not at all, ”added the Rwandan president.
Okonjo-Iweala’s nomination has been hailed as a significant achievement by people in her native Nigeria and a #ankaraarmy – referring to the distinctive African print she wears – has already formed online.
A the user tweeted: “Hillary [Clinton] had an army of pants. We will create a #AnkaraArmy for NOI! Get ready, the date is February 15th… ”
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