Fifty-eight of the 164 Members States of the World Trade Organization (WTO) have expressed their unflinching support for extending the term of the incumbent Director-General, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, for second term.
This was revealed at a WTO General Council meeting on July 22, according to an statement from the organization.
The statement read, “The African Group requests that the current Director -General makes herself available to serving a second term and has proposed that the process of reappointing the Director-General should be started as soon as possible”.
During the meeting, 58 Members, many representing different groups, vowed their support for this proposal, urging Okonjo Iweala to announce her intentions regarding a second term soon.
The majority praised her hard work and achievements during her first tenure.
Okonjo Iweala, who is 70, expressed her gratitude for the support from the Members, saying, “Everything that I’ve accomplished, We’ve accomplished together”.
She acknowledged the Members’ and indicated that she was favourably inclined towards a second term, promising to communicate her intentions shortly.
Okonjo-Iweala, before her role as the Director -General World Trade Organisation (WTO), served as Nigeria’s Finance Minister twice, from 2003-2006 and 2011-2015, and briefly as Foreign Minister in 2006.
Okonjo-Iweala, was also a Development Economist at the World Bank for 25 years, where she rose to the position of Managing Director of Operations.
Okonjo-Iweala, assumed office as Director-General World Trade Organization, WTO, on March 1, 2021, and her first term is set to expire on August 31, 2025. She is eligible for a second term.
She made history as the first woman and the first African to hold the position of the WTO Director -General.
-9News Nigeria.
