The path has been cleared for Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to become the first African woman to lead the World Trade Organization. This follows the decision by her sole competitor, South Korea’s Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee, to drop from the race on 5 February.
The WTO Director-General job is selected by consensus and so when former US President Donald Trump refused to back her, the process was stalled until a consensus is reached.
Following the change of government in the US, a new administration led by Joe Biden renewed the hopes of many that for the first time, an African would lead the WTO. Indeed, this was evident when a group of former US government officials urged the Biden administration to back Okonjo-Iweala, who is also a US citizen.
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