Okonjo- Iweala Optimistic Of Biden’s Support For WTO Job

Nigeria’s former Finance Minister and the Current Chair Board of GAVI, Dr Ngozi Okonjo- Iweala, has expressed optimism that United States President- elect, Joe Biden, will join the consensus that will see her emerge as the first African and female Director- General of the World Trade Organisation.

The comment follows a keenly contested  race to replace the WTO former DG, Roberto Azevedo,  who resigned in May.

The tussle has seen Okonjo- Iweala emerge as the best candidate for the job out of eight candidates,

The Donald Trump administration had favoured protectionism and renegotiated bilateral agreements, a reason for adopting the candidature of South Korea’s Yoo Myung-hee, who later dropped out of the race in November last year after Nigeria’s ex- finance minister secured 164 votes.

Speaking on her chances of becoming DG, she expressed optimism that the Biden’s administration would support her emergence.

“Absolutely, I think that the President-elect, Biden has declared that he will adopt a more multilateral approach with respect to trade and multilateral trading system.

“I don’t expect the substance of the issue that the United States has towards trade to change, but the approach to solving those problems, I think will  be more collegial, will be more multilateral and that will make things easier to resolve at the WTO,” she said on Arise Tv programme.

The Trump administration had accused China of technology theft and other ‘unfair practices’ at the WTO with Robert Lighthizer, the country’s top trade negotiator, saying “The WTO is completely inadequate to stop China’s harmful technology practices.”

The US had slammed heavy tariffs on what would eventually become more than $300bn worth of products, with the first round to take-off in 2018.

On resolving the trade feud between the US and the world’s second largest economy, China, Okonjo-Iweala expressed optimism about the future of both countries at the WTO.

She said, “I don’t think it is so much an uncertain future with the fact the WTO is one of the most important multilateral organisation in the world.

“You saw how all countries were scrambling to get their candidates to get this position. It faces strong challenges, but it is very clear that the world leaders feel they need this organisation that is why there is so much interest.

“I think what we need to do is tackle those challenges one by one and have the WTO have some whims so that it can move forward.

“One of the first move is to see how the WTO and the multilateral trading system can continue to solving this Covid-19 pandemic through allowing a better trade in medicines, therapeutics, diagnostics and vaccines. That is one area also how trade can continue to reviving the global economy.”

She said the WTO is the only trade bloc that resolves trade dispute between countries, a key reason behind the attention given to it by countries.