Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been reappointed as the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), securing a second term amid fears of potential disruption from a possible return of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency.
The WTO’s 166 member nations reached a consensus on Friday to extend Okonjo-Iweala’s leadership, the organization confirmed in a statement.
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Her current term, set to expire in August 2025, will now continue uninterrupted. The decision followed calls from African nations to accelerate the process, citing the need for stability ahead of the WTO’s ministerial conference in Cameroon in 2026.
Observers suggest the expedited reappointment also sought to preempt any opposition from Trump, whose administration previously blocked her initial appointment in 2020, delaying her tenure until after President Joe Biden assumed office in 2021. Keith Rockwell, a senior research fellow at the Hinrich Foundation, explained that speeding up the process avoided “the risk of Trump’s team vetoing her as they did four years ago.”
Okonjo-Iweala, the first African and the first woman to lead the WTO, has been credited with reinvigorating the organization by prioritizing issues such as climate change and global health. Despite this, her reappointment faced less enthusiasm from members who were more concerned about avoiding a leadership vacuum than unanimous support for her policies.
“The alternative of no-one leading the organization is unacceptable,” a source familiar with the discussions told AFP.
The specter of Trump’s trade policies looms large, with his previous term marked by relentless criticism of the WTO, the crippling of its appeals system, and threats to withdraw the United States entirely. His recent promises to impose sweeping tariffs on key trading partners have fueled concerns that his potential return could destabilize global trade.
Elvire Fabry, a researcher at the Institut Jacques Delors think tank, noted that Okonjo-Iweala’s second term may involve “a firefighter role” to preserve the WTO’s relevance. “It will be a very difficult mandate, with little certainty about what will happen,” another source said.
The WTO faces mounting pressure to reform its dispute resolution mechanisms, which have remained dormant since Trump’s first term. Despite the challenges, Rockwell emphasized that the organization’s difficulties extend beyond Washington. “It’s a time when the application of WTO rules has deteriorated globally,” he said.
As governments increasingly sidestep WTO rules in pursuit of national security, environmental goals, and industrialization, Okonjo-Iweala’s leadership will be tested in safeguarding the institution’s credibility while navigating an uncertain global trade landscape.
