By Monalisa Agbata
In a statement published by the office of the US Trade Representative, Robert Lighthizer, on Wednesday 28, 2020, the US government explains its move in favour of Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee as the next WTO Director-General against Nigeria’s former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. According to Robert “The United States supports the selection of Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee as the next WTO Director-General.
“Minister Yoo is a bona fide trade expert who has distinguished herself during a 25-year career as a successful trade negotiator and trade policy maker. She has all the skills necessary to be an effective leader of the organization. “This is a very difficult time for the WTO and international trade. There have been no multilateral tariff negotiations in 25 years, the dispute settlement system has gotten out of control, and too few members fulfill basic transparency obligations.
“The WTO is badly in need of major reform. It must be led by someone with real, hands-on experience in the field.”
In reaction to evolving events around the WTO election, On Thursday, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala expressed optimism over the elections despite the hiccups. From her verified twitter handle she said; “Happy for the success & continued progress of our @wto DG bid. Very humbled to be declared the candidate with the largest, broadest support among members & most likely to attract consensus. We move on to the next step on Nov 9, despite hiccups. We’re keeping the positivity going.”
The Nigeria Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a Press Statement on Thursday, expressed optimism, stating that ‘’Nigeria will continue to engage relevant stakeholders to ensure that the lofty aspiration to lead the World Trade Organization is realised.’’
The Ministry added that a meeting would be held by the General Council of the WTO on the 9th of November 2020 to declare a final decision on the election process.