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Uche Usim, Abuja
Former Finance Minister, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has formally joined the race to possibly become the next Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) as her nomination by President Muhammadu Buhari has been accepted.
The formal acceptance of her nomination means she is now penciled down to slug it out with other nominees later in the year. The WTO on its official website said:
“Nigeria, on 9 June, 2020, nominated Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for the post of WTO Director-General to succeed the current Director-General, Mr Roberto Azevêdo, who has announced he will step down on 31 August 2020″.
Okonjo-Iweala’s endorsement by President Buhari to head the WTO did not come without some push back within Africa.
Egypt, on learning she has been nominated, did not hide its disapproval, arguing that the executive decision of the African Union (AU) which had set a deadline of November 30, 2019 for African countries to nominate candidates had been violated.
It further claimed that Okonjo-Iweala’s nomination was late and should be totally rejected and not honoured.
In puncturing Egypt’s argument, the WTO said on Tuesday that nominations are still open till July 8, 2020.
Nigerians have hailed President Muhammadu Buhari for nominating Okonjo-Iweala as she possesses impeccable credentials and robust international exposure to head a global body like the WTO.
