Dailyreport
Amidst Donald Trump’s impending return and his contempt for global trade regulations, World Trade Organisation chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was reappointed on Friday for a second term.The WTO director-general was reappointed by Okonjo-Iweala.
As the sole contender, Okonjo-Iweala, the first African and woman to lead the World Trade Organisation, had virtually been guaranteed a second term.
The WTO said in a statement that the 166 members of the body “today agreed to give incumbent Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala a second term as director-general.”
According to the WTO, the 70-year-old Nigerian’s reappointment was unanimously confirmed at a special meeting of the organization’s General Council that took place behind closed doors.
The appointment procedure for the following mandate was originally planned to take months, and her current tenure ends in August 2025.
However, as Okonjo-Iweala was the sole contender, African nations demanded that the procedure be expedited, formally to help with the WTO’s upcoming major ministerial session, which is scheduled for Cameroon in 2026.
According to Keith Rockwell, a senior research scholar at the Hinrich Foundation, the unspoken goal is to “speed up the process, because they did not want Trump’s team to come in and veto her as they did four years ago.”
Because director-generals are often chosen by consensus, Trump was able to stall Okonjo-Iweala’s selection in 2020 for months, delaying her takeover until after President Joe Biden took office in early 2021.
Fear of emptiness
A source close to the talks told AFP that the resounding support for Okonjo-Iweala’s second term came “not so much (because) everyone loves Ngozi.”
Instead, members “were concerned that if she isn’t reinstated, the Washington administration might slow things (or) block other contenders,” according to the source, creating a gap at the top.
“They find it unacceptable that there is no one in charge of the organisation.”
Fast-tracking Okonjo-Iweala’s reappointment “creates tensions in the relationship with the United States, for sure — tensions which would probably have been there under any circumstances, but now this raises the stakes,” former WTO spokesperson Rockwell told AFP.
Trump’s government launched constant attacks on the WTO during his first term, crippling the organization’s dispute resolution appeals process and threatening to remove the US from the organisation entirely.
Additionally, Trump has already hinted that he is getting ready to start full-scale trade battles, threatening to impose a barrage of tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China on January 20, his first day in office.
Elvire Fabry, a researcher at the think tank Institut Jacques Delors, stated, “His intention to disregard any regulations is demonstrated by the tariff festival that has been announced thus far.”
She told AFP that the United States would not even have to leave the WTO. “They are breaking away from the WTO regulations.”
According to her, the WTO chief will play “a firefighter role” in this situation.
“Very difficult.” According to a second person familiar with the talks on expediting Okonjo-Iweala’s reappointment, it will be about “saving what can be saved, and making the case that there is no real alternative to the WTO rules.”
“There is little certainty about what will happen, and it will be a very difficult mandate.”
Rockwell pointed out that Washington was not the only source of the WTO’s issues.
“The way the WTO rules are being applied has gotten worse at this time,” he stated.
“The United States is not to blame for anything. Many other members also have that trait.
“Why Politicians Lie about Trade” author Dmitry Grozoubinski concurred.
Policymakers are no longer as swayed by claims that their proposals go beyond the language or spirit of WTO obligations, he told AFP, adding that governments are increasingly using trade measures to address concerns including environmental competition, re-industrialization, and national security.
“The WTO’s options will be limited if president-elect Trump makes destroying it a priority,” he said, adding that the organisation “is not built to withstand overt demolition from within its membership.”
Okonjo-Iweala has attempted to revitalise the shaky WTO since his leadership, advocating for new attention to issues like health and climate change.
The WTO’s moribund appeals section, which failed during the first Trump administration because Washington prevented the nomination of judges, is the focus of increasing pressure for reform.
