The Nigerian Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the sole candidate for Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The unique candidacy of the 70-year-old economist was announced in a WTO press release on November 9, 2024. Candidate for her succession, the former Minister of Finance of Nigeria will come to the end of her four-year mandate on August 31 2025. Director General of the WTO since March 2021, she announced her ambition to run for a second term at the head of the WTO on September 16, 2024, with aims to continue the projects undertaken during her first mandate.
First woman and first African to head the World Trade Organization (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the sole candidate for the position of Director-General of the organization. The unique candidacy of the 70-year-old Nigerian was announced in a WTO press release on November 9, 2024. Director-General of the WTO since March 2021, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, whose mandate ends on August 31, 2025, is the sole candidate for her succession.
“Under the procedures for the appointment of Directors-General (WT/L/509), I am required to communicate to Members a consolidated list of candidacies received for the post of Director-General immediately after the close of the nomination period, in this case November 8, 2024. I would like to advise members that at the end of the nomination period the only candidacy received for this post is from Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the incumbent Director-General.”
Petter Ølberg, WTO General Council Chair – Norway
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala had announced her ambition to run for a second four-year term at the head of the WTO on September 16, 2024, with the aim of continuing the projects undertaken during her first term. While WTO forecasts reveal a 2.6% increase in the volume of world merchandise trade in 2024 and 3.3% in 2025, after falling 1.2% in 2023, the Nigerian economist is particularly banking on the development of small businesses for more competitive trade. She champions the role of global supply chain finance, valued at around USD 2.3 trillion, in integrating small businesses from developing countries into global trade.
“It is a very compelling mission. The purpose is to enhance living standards, to help create employment and to support sustainable development. I said to myself that this is all about people, about helping, assisting and improving the lives of people and that is what I have been passionate about all my life. So that is what really convinced me to go in for that.”
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director-General – Nigeria
Former Minister of Finance of Nigeria, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has over 30 years of experience in international development. She has a 25-year career at the World Bank as a development economist. The seventh person to serve as WTO Director-General, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is expected to secure a second term at the head of the world’s largest international economic organization, with 166 member states representing over 98% of global trade and global GDP.