Okonjo-Iweala Remains Only Candidate For WTO Chief Role Position

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

Okonjo-Iweala Remains Only Candidate For WTO Chief Role Position.

World Trade Organization (WTO) has announced that Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the current director-general, is the only candidate for the role as her first term nears its end. According to a statement released by the WTO on Saturday, Okonjo-Iweala expressed her readiness to serve a second four-year term on September 16.

With no other candidates nominated, her path to reappointment appears secure. The WTO began the selection process for its next director-general on October 8, giving member nations until November 8 to submit nominations. Petter Olberg, Chair of the WTO General Council, confirmed in a notice to members that no additional nominations were submitted by the deadline, positioning Okonjo-Iweala to continue her leadership.

The statement reads, “Under the procedures for the appointment of Directors-General (WT/L/509), I am required to communicate to Members a consolidated list of candidatures received for the post of Director-General immediately after the close of the nomination period, in this case, 8 November 2024.”

The WTO noted that Okonjo-Iweala’s current term will conclude on August 31, 2025, and further steps in the process will soon be communicated by the General Council Chair.

Appointed on February 15, 2021, Okonjo-Iweala made history as the first woman and first African to lead the WTO. Her second-term bid had faced uncertainty after Donald Trump’s recent win in the U.S. presidential election, as his administration had previously blocked her nomination in favor of South Korea’s Yoo Myung-hee. However, with Joe Biden’s support following his election, Okonjo-Iweala secured her first term as director-general.