Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been appointed to head the World Trade Organisation.
A statement from WTO said Okonjo-Iweala, 66, was appointed director-general of the organisation by representatives of the 164 member countries.
In her own statement, Okonjo-Iweala said her first priority would be to quickly address the economic and health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and to “implement the policy responses we need to get the global economy going again.”
“Our organization faces a great many challenges but working together we can collectively make the WTO stronger, more agile and better adapted to the realities of today,” she said.
The appointment came after new United States President Joe Biden endorsed her candidacy, which had been blocked by former President Donald Trump.
On Monday, the US delegate to the WTO said he was “eager” to work with Okonjo-Iweala.
“The United States is committed to working closely with Director General Okonjo-Iweala and she can count on the United States to be a constructive partner,” said Charge d’Affaires David Bisbee in remarks sent to Reuters news agency by the US diplomatic mission in Geneva.
Biden’s decision to support Okonjo-Iweala was part of his broader agenda to choose more cooperative approaches to international problems after Trump’s “America First” approach launched multiple trade disputes.
Earlier this month, the Biden administration reversed Trump’s opposition and expressed “strong support’’ for Okonjo-Iweala and said she “brings a wealth of knowledge in economics and international diplomacy”. She is the first African official and the first woman to hold the job.
Okonjo-Iweala, formerly Nigeria’s finance minister, had a 25-year career at the World Bank, where she rose to the number-two position of managing director. She holds both US and Nigerian citizenship.
South Korean trade minister Yoo Myung-hee had withdrawn her candidacy, leaving Okonjo-Iweala as the only choice. Her predecessor, Roberto Azevedo, stepped down on August 31, a year before his term expired.
The World Trade Organization is an international body that deals with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated among the bulk of the world’s nations and ratified in their legislatures.
