Tag: Okonjo Iweala

Former Presidential Candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adewole Adebayo has expressed joy over the reappointment of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as Director-General (DG) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), saying it was well-deserved.

The General Council of the World Trade Organisation on Friday, November 29, reappointed Okonjo-Iweala for a second term as its DG. The new four-year tenure will begin on September 1, 2025.

Writing on his official X, @Pres_Adebayo, the SDP chieftain thanked President Bola Tinubu and other global stakeholders at WTO for making her reappointment possible.

Read Also: African women make $227million from Shea Butter processing – Okonjo Iweala

He equally expressed hope that her reappointment would improve global trade, which will, in turn, foster social justice, international friendship, and sustainable development. “I am most delighted to congratulate our dear sister and one of the world’s finest public servants @NOIweala on her reappointment for a second term as the Director-General of the World Trade Organization. I thank @officialABAT and other global stakeholders of the @wto for their support for the most deserving candidate.

“It is my hope that global trade will become a means of fostering social justice, international friendship, and sustainable development in our time to bid farewell to poverty and insecurity in a world awash with capital, technology and enterprise,” he stated.

The first woman and the first African to hold the position of Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has officially secured her re-election for a second term.

The 70-year-old announced her intention to seek re-election in September, and the General Council of the WTO confirmed her reappointment after the nomination deadline on November 8 passed with no competing candidates.

Her current term, which began in March 2021, is set to end in August 2025.

Below are thirteen things to know about Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala:

1. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is a prominent Nigerian economist and international development expert.

2. She was born on June 13, 1954.

3. Okonjo-Iweala earned her Bachelor’s degree in Economics, graduating Magna Cum Laude from Harvard University.

4. She obtained a PhD in Regional Economics and Development from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

5. Okonjo-Iweala had a 25-year career at the World Bank, where she rose to the position of Managing Director of Operations. 

6. She is the current Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

7. She became DG of WTO on Monday, March 1, 2021.

8. Okonjo-Iweala is the first woman and first African to lead the WTO in its 75-year history.

9. She served two terms as Nigeria’s Finance Minister (2003-2006 and 2011-2015).

Read Also: NACCIMA to honour Soyinka, Okonjo Iweala, others

10. Okonjo-Iweala is the first woman to serve as Nigeria’s Finance Minister.

11. She also chaired the Board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance from 2016 to 2020.

12. Okonjo-Iweala has been recognised as one of Forbes’ Top 100 Most Powerful Women several times.

13. On Friday, November 29, Okonjo-Iweala was re-elected for a second term as the Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). 

The Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, has highlighted the untapped potential of the Shea butter sector, despite African women having earned $227 million from Shea butter processing.

She noted that 16 million women derive their livelihood from farming and processing Shea.

The WTO DG disclosed this at the Global Shea Alliance Conference in Abuja with the theme, ‘SHEA 2024 Bridging the gap’, where she mentioned that over 35,000 women received training in Shea processing, quality practices, and other value-added Shea products.

According to her, “85% of all Shea exports are used as cocoa butter equivalent and 15% are used for cosmetics. The cosmetics Shea Butter market is currently worth $ 600 million and is expected to reach $ 850 million by the end of 2027. African women can definitely benefit from these sectors.

Read Also; Come back home if you’re tired – Actress Uchenna Nnanna tells Nigerians in Diaspora

“At the WTO Shea is one of the main agricultural exports with eight African countries as members, the countries are, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote’voire, Mali, Nigeria, Ghana, and Togo. In Ghana alone, Shea butter is valued at $ 92 million in 2022.

So far, over one million women are involved in this even though most of the potential in these sectors is still untapped.”

The Executive Director, CEO of Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Nonye Ayeni noted that the global value of shea production and export in the year 2023, value chain was $2.17 billion while it is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7.1% by 2030, representing the sum of $5.8 billion.

Ayeni added that in 2016 the Council partnered with the World Trade Organization and Standards and Trade Development Facility to execute Project 172 which was a game changer in the Nigeria Shea sector.

The Project succeeded in establishing an effective free fatty acid (FFA) and impurities control system for Shea butter and establishing 4 Shea butter model Processing Centers in Niger, Kebbi, Oyo, and Kwara states.