Who will replace the resigned Roberto Azevêdo at the head of the world trade organization? Many want this position. The nominations include those of the former Kenyan Minister of Commerce Amina Mohamed and the former Minister of Finance of Nigeria Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
The next boss of the world trade organization could be a boss. Following the announced departure of the current head of the WTO, the Brazilian Roberto Azevêdo, at the end of August 2020, names are circulating to take over, including many African personalities. Which would be a first for the institution. We are talking about the Benin ambassador to the WTO, Eloi Laourou, the Egyptian Abderl Hamid Mamdouh or the Nigerian Yonov Frederick Agah, deputy director general of the organization since 2013.
But two women draw all the attention: Amina Mohamed, ex-Kenyan Minister of Trade then Foreign Affairs, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, ex-Minister of Finance of Nigeria. The latter is the favorite of the votes. Observers see her as the candidate most likely to offer Africa the highest place in the decision-making bodies within the WTO.
“For its support in Geneva (headquarters of the World Trade Organization, WTO) she is simply the candidate that the institution, in turmoil, needs to improve its reputation. Far from the hostile polarization between Washington and Beijing that has brought the WTO to a halt in recent months, the institution would embrace the much vaunted ‘African century" https://www.aufeminin.com/ ", explains the Brussels weekly Politico.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
It was President Muhammadu Buhari who nominated Ngozi Okonjo Iweala as the candidate from Nigeria. A choice that is understandable because the lady is known in her country for her commitment to reduce corruption and public debt, explains theEcofin agency. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, a former finance minister from Nigeria between 2011 and 2015, was appointed chief executive of the World Bank in 2007. And in 2018, she became the first African personality on the Twitter board of directors. She currently chairs the Global Vaccine Alliance.
For the Nigerian press, this impressive fate would take her to the coveted post. And as FranceInfo recalls, she is one of the rare women to have exercised important political responsibilities in the most populous country in Africa, the continent's largest economy.
Amina mohamed
We must not forget the other asset of this competition, the Kenyan Amina Mohamed. Her career is just as beautiful as her colleague. She had a long career as a diplomat before becoming Minister of Foreign Affairs, Education and Sports in the cabinet of President Uhuru Kenyatta, since 2013.
Amina Mohamed was ambassador and permanent representative to the Kenyan diplomatic mission in Geneva between 2000 and 2006, and she chaired the African Group on the Human Rights Commission of the WTO. She was the first woman to chair the General Council of the WTO in 2005.
Presiding over the three most important organs of the organization could give him an advantage over the other candidates.
"We need someone with the right background, someone who is committed to the multilateral system … but who also has the political stature to be an effective facilitator and consensus builder. If that person happens to be African or that it is a woman, I think it will be so much better ", said Amina Mohamed in a recent interview with Financial Times.
"It is important to be inclusive and to show that members know that every part of the globe can make a positive contribution to the functioning of the WTO," she added.
This "world after" more than economically difficult suggests complications in the choice of Azevêdo's successor. The negotiations will be tense. To be continued in the next episode.