Ex-Nigerian Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has been endorsed by The Heads of State and Governments of the 15 Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) for the position of the Director-General of the World Trade Organization(WTO).
Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyema on Twitter, shared a statement by ECOWAS which was dated June 19, 2020, explaining that the regional body made the decision based on the authority of the Heads of State and Government of its member-nations.
The statement was signed by President Mahmoud Issoufou, Chairman of the ECOWAS . See the tweet below:
#ECOWAS has formally endorsed Dr. @NOIweala for the position of Director-General of the World Trade Organisation for the period of 2021-2025.
Also called on other African and Non African countries to do same. #COVID19 @NigeriaGov @DigiCommsNG @ecowas_cedeao @_AfricanUnion @wto pic.twitter.com/Ewec8Xq8R1— Geoffrey Onyeama (@GeoffreyOnyeama) June 22, 2020
“Since the creation of the WTO on Jan. 1, 1995, which is a successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) established on Jan. 1, 1948, no African has assumed the position of Director-General of the Organization.
“The Federal Republic of Nigeria has formally nominated Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for the position of Director-General of WTO for the period 2021 to 2025.
“The ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government endorsed the Candidate of Nigeria having acknowledged her long years of managerial experience at the top echelons of multilateral institutions.
“Her established reputation as a fearless reformer, her excellent negotiating and political skills, her experience of over 30 years as a Development Economist with a long-standing interest in trade.
“Her excellent academic qualifications, her positions as Managing Director World Bank, and currently as Board Chair Gavi, and AU Special Envoy to Mobilize Financial Resources for the fight against Covid19″.
Taking to Twitter, Okonjo-Iweala thanked ECOWAS for endorsing her candidacy for the World Trade Organisation office.