Turkey hails appointment of new WTO chief

Turkey welcomed late on Feb. 15 the appointment of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the new director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO). 

"We welcome the conclusion of the recent Director-General selection process at the World Trade Organization with the appointment of the Nigerian candidate Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who received the strongest support in the process, as the new WTO Director General at the WTO General Council meeting held on February 15, 2021," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The statement emphasized that Okonjo-Iweala has "rich experience" in the fields of economy and diplomacy stemming from her previous positions including as finance minister and foreign minister of Nigeria as well as vice president of the World Bank.

She will take up her duties on March 1 and her term, which is renewable, will expire on Aug. 31, 2025.

The ministry congratulated Okonjo-Iweala, adding it believes the new world trade body chief will demonstrate "outstanding success" also in her work at the WTO.

"We also find it important that the selection process was concluded within the framework of the principle of consensus that constitutes the basis of the WTO's rules of procedure. In this regard, we would like to thank all candidates who campaigned during the selection process for their contributions to the organization's vision and its pluralist and democratic structure," it said.

Okonjo-Iweala became the first woman and African to head the WTO, which has been hobbled by internal dissent in recent years.

"On this occasion, we reiterate our support for the rules-based multilateral free trade system. The WTO, as an institution, is in need of reform, and progress in that direction will be in the interests of all...