Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala Reappointed for Second Term as WTO Director-General

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the head of the World Trade Organization (WTO), was reappointed for a second term on Friday, amid concerns over the potential return of Donald Trump and his opposition to international trade agreements.

Okonjo-Iweala, who made history as the first woman and first African to lead the WTO, was the sole candidate in the race and had already been widely expected to secure a second term. The WTO’s 166 members reached a consensus to approve her reappointment during a closed-door meeting of the General Council.

At 70, Okonjo-Iweala’s current term will end in August 2025. The reappointment process, which was originally set to take months, was expedited following a push from African nations. This move was intended to streamline preparations for the WTO’s next major ministerial conference, which is scheduled for Cameroon in 2026.

The accelerated process was also seen as a response to fears of potential interference from the Trump administration, which had delayed her appointment in 2020. Keith Rockwell, a senior research fellow at the Hinrich Foundation, noted that the intention was to avoid a repeat of the 2020 situation, when Trump’s team blocked her appointment, forcing her to take office only after President Joe Biden assumed the presidency in 2021.