Pulse Nigeria is the most followed news and entertainment platform, informing and engaging young Nigerians round the clock, providing updates by the hour.

Pulse Nigeria

The pool has been reduced to five and will further be reduced to two, as the WTO searches for a consensus candidate.

Okonjo-Iweala makes shortlist of 5 for WTO top job | Pulse Nigeria

Jude Egbas

<h1>Nigeria’s former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has scaled yet another hurdle in the race for the job of Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).</h1>

Okonjo-Iweala is on a shortlist of five candidates (from eight candidates) who will now be considered for the next stage, as the WTO searches for the consensus candidate to replace Brazilian Roberto Azevêdo.

Azevedo informed WTO members on May 14 that he would be stepping down from his post, one year before the expiry of his mandate. He subsequently left office on August 31.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The five candidates who will advance to the next selection process are: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria, Yoo Myung-hee of the Republic of Korea, Amina C. Mohamed of Kenya, Mohammad Maziad Al-Tuwaijri of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Liam Fox of the United Kingdom.

<div class="embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">How will the next WTO Director-General be selected? We break it down into a few steps for you. More on the process here: <a href="https://t.co/rCo7gRsEkI">https://t.co/rCo7gRsEkI</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WTODG?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WTODG</a> <a href="https://t.co/Wgg6izsqV5">pic.twitter.com/Wgg6izsqV5</a>&mdash; WTO (@wto) <a href="https://twitter.com/wto/status/1306896478368149511?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 18, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

</div>

“Members consider all (the candidates) highly qualified and respected individuals. I would also like to pay tribute to the dignified manner in which they, their delegations, and their governments have conducted themselves in this process.

"Their willingness to engage, especially at these challenging times, has been greatly appreciated, and the organisation is in their debt,” said General Council Chair, David Walker of New Zealand.

The second phase of consultations will begin on September 24 and run until October 6.

During this period, members will be asked in confidence to express two preferences to the facilitators. Afterwards, the pool of five candidates will be narrowed to two.

Okonjo-Iweala was appointed member of SA’s economic council. In this photo, she's with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa (ThisdayLive)

Okonjo-Iweala appointed member NOT head of SA’s economic council (ThisdayLive)

The ultimate objective of the WTO is to arrive at the next DG by consensus.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.pulse.ng/business/buhari-nominates-okonjo-iweala-for-wto-dg/8d5gvfw">President Muhammadu Buhari nominated </a>Okonjo-Iweala, 66, for the position on June 5, 2020.

The new boss of the WTO will be tasked with overseeing much needed reforms, steer the trading world through a post-COVID recession, clinch multilateral deals, manage rising protectionism and navigate the trade war between China and the United States.

Okonjo-Iweala makes shortlist of 5 for WTO top job

Pulse Picks

Business

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Politics

Local

Metro

World

News 

Celebrities

Music

Movies

Fashion

Beauty & Health

Relationships & Weddings

Food & Travel

Domestic

International 

Sports 

Celebrity Picks

Pulse Marketing

Explore categories

Influencer Awards

Company Pages

Breaking News & Top Stories | Pulse Nigeria

Video

Checkout our authors for the latest content across entertainment, sports, business and more. Be first to receive exclusive updates with your free subscription straight to your phone | Pulse Nigeria 

Authors | Pulse Nigeria

| Pulse Nigeria

Read the latest news across entertainment, sports, business and more. Be first to receive exclusive updates with your free subscription straight to your phone | Pulse Nigeria

Search for the latest content across entertainment, sports, business and more. Be first to receive exclusive updates with your free subscription straight to your phone | Pulse Nigeria

Search Results | Pulse Nigeria

Watch the latest videos across entertainment, sports, business and more. Be first to receive exclusive updates with your free subscription straight to your phone | Pulse Nigeria