· Washington has refused to recognise Okonjo-Iweala as the consensus candidate for appointment as director-general.
· Her candidature was supported by the European Union, Japan, China and key stakeholders within WTO itself.
Africa was celebrating the win of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, as the first woman, the first African to lead the World Trade organisation. (WTO). Soon after our reports in www.trendsnfrica about her win, in a surprise development, Washington has refused to recognise Okonjo-Iweala as the consensus candidate for appointment as director-general.
The decisions at the 164-member global trade body are based on a consensus. Her candidature was supported by the European Union, Japan, China and key stakeholders within WTO itself. The announcement of the new director-general is now put on hold until 9 November when the body’s general council is expected to meet after the US presidential elections. In the event of a lack of consensus, the selection of a new WTO director-general will be based on a vote as a last resort—a first for the global trade body.
The US hostile stance has created complications, in either case of Trump winning the elections or losing it. If he loses, he is still going to be in power until mid-Jan and it will have consequences. Judd Devermont, director of the Africa Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies feels that the Trump administration ‘will drive harder than ever to push their agenda in the remaining months if they’re defeated at the ballot box’.
Trump White House has been meddling with the World Trade Organization affairs earlier too. It blocked the appointment of judges to the appellate body of the WTO, practically halting it from functioning and hearing appeals on global trade disputes.
