Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has told members of the World Trade Organization. WTO, why she’s the best for the position of the Director General.
Speaking at the meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, on Wednesday, the former World Bank director said she has all it takes to become the first African and first female DG of the global trade force established in 1995.
Following the nomination stage which closed on July 8, the eight candidates vying for the position started presenting themselves to the 164 States that comprise the WTO on Wednesday.
Other candidates aside Okonjo-Iweala are Abdel-Hamid Mamdouh (Egypt), Amina Mohamed (Kenya), Jesús Kuri (Mexico), Tudor Ulianovschi (Moldova), Yoo Myung-hee (Korea), Mohammad Al-Tuwaijri (Saudi Arabia), and Liam Fox (UK).
She said, “I think it is an honour to have three qualified candidates from my continent and we should not necessarily see it as a bad thing.
“I have total respect for my competitors from all continents for the job of WTO and I believe that WTO members should select on merit. Of course, I would love if that came from Africa because Africa has never had a turn. I would love if it is a woman because a woman has not had a turn and I would love if it were me because I think I’m qualified to lead and I have all the attributes.
“WTO needs leadership and it needs someone able to bring a bundle of qualities – political ability and ability to reach decision-makers. International contacts, I have that. Managerial capability from my long years in a multilateral organisation like the World Bank. The ability to forge consensus, to negotiate, a reformer. I have an established reputation as a strong reformer both at the World Bank and also in my country. I’ve even written a book about it.
“So, I think together I bring a bundle of qualities – public sector, private sector – because you need to know how do businesses see the WTO and what needs to be done. What about micro-medium and small enterprises? Just to find out what it means to be a small-medium enterprise owner, I started one myself in Nigeria to see what are the obstacles in the way that you need to clear out.
“So, I’m a doer. I’m solution-oriented and pragmatic. I bring together the bundle of qualities and the leadership acumen that you need to lead this. So, I would hope that if selected from the African continent, it should be me.”
Responding to a question about her being from the financial sector and not a trade expert, the former finance minister said, “That’s a totally wrong notion. I’ve paid respect to my competitors because that’s my nature. I don’t criticise other people, I respect them. Competitors who have been saying that she is not a trade expert are wrong.
“I’m a Development Economist and you cannot do that without looking at trade. Trade is an essential part of Development Economics, so I have been doing it. In my whole years at the World Bank, I worked on Trade Policy Reforms in middle and low-income countries at the bank. As finance minister, Customs Service in my country reported to me and that is all about trade facilitation. I helped my country’s negotiation with my Trade Minister on the ECOWAS Common External Tariffs. I don’t know how much more trade you can have more than that.
“So, those who say I don’t have trade experience are mistaken. I think the qualities I have are even better because I combine Development Economics with trade knowledge along with Finance. And you need those combination of skills to lead the WTO. So, I think I have the skills that are needed. This is a familiar territory to me not an alien one; I’m a trade person.”
From day one, she had not just been brilliant, but wonderful. I was in Kaduna then, she did all her educational career; from kindergarten to the nursery, at the Air Force base and the Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA) Kaduna. One day, when she was very small, she pointed to one small aircraft packed on the field and said: “Dad, one day I am going to fly that aircraft”, and I said “Amen!”
So, from that day, she started working towards that. She got admission into the Nigerian Defence Academy Kaduna. She had a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics, she became an Air Force Cadet. She was sent on several courses abroad and became a pilot. I just thank God that she was able to achieve her dreams as a baby before her death. She was my fourth born.
From day one, she had been very, very intelligent. Sometimes, I wondered what type of IQ she had. She also combined intelligence with hard-work. If you had been here when her bosses from Enugu came, you would think she was their daughter, the way they were eulogising her and being proud of her achievements.
Just yesterday, at about 1 pm; I called her because she just came back from an operation against the bandits in Katsina. They gave them one week to rest, and so she was sleeping and told me she was in bed resting. She said she would later go out to make some photocopies and I told her not to be long, and to return home on time because she was staying with my first daughter in Kaduna. Around 5.30 pm, somebody called me and asked if I had called her today, and I said yes, then the person told me to call her, which I did, but no response. So, I called her colleagues, and they were all crying on the phone.
I asked, “What happened?” They were just crying. So, I called one of her bosses who told me that she is in the mortuary, and I said “What!” Somebody I spoke with four hours ago and by 5 pm she is in the mortuary. I had to drive to Lokoja from Abuja to enable me to inform her mother physically because I could not break such news on the phone, but when I came she had gone to the prayer mountain. She came back at around 8.30 am. I told her this is what I heard, but that I had not confirmed.
I must say that I am really impressed by the outpouring of sympathy and support. There have been several visits from her bosses from all over the country, including here in Lokoja, Abuja, Kaduna, Enugu and everywhere. The support has been overwhelming.
They even gave a token and promised that later they would do something. They have even promised to give a choice of where to bury her, but her commandant suggested that she should be buried at the National Cemetery Abuja, because of the number of people that will attend the funeral and due to the feat she had achieved, as the first female combatant pilot in Nigeria.
