WTO: postponement of the decisive meeting of November 9, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala pending

Nigerian candidate for WHO presidency Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on July 15, 2020 in Geneva.

AFP Photos / Fafbrice Coffrini

Text by: RFI Follow

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Africa will have to wait a little longer before knowing whether or not the Nigerian Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala will be the next Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The organization, which is in charge of managing trade relations around the world, has indeed postponed the meeting of Monday, November 9, during which its members had to choose between the Nigerian candidate and the South Korean Yoo Myung-hee.

The position of the United States, opposed to Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, complicates everything.

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The WTO is an institution in crisis, and it is undoubtedly to avoid deepening the divisions that it decided, Friday November 6, to postpone the meeting of Monday 9, during which it was to appoint its future director. general.

After six months of work to choose among the eight candidates in the running, the majority of the 164 member countries of the organization had, without reservation,

.

It was October 28th.

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But although the Nigerian politician came out on top in the previous ballot,

, continuing to back her rival, South Korean Yoo Myung-hee.

This spectacular veto had the effect of an electric shock in an organization which usually appoints its general manager by consensus and does not wish to resort to the vote, for fear of deepening the divisions.

Especially at the moment, because the WTO is under fire from criticism from the Trump administration, which accuses it of being too favorable to China.

The fear of the organization would be to see the United States withdraw.

Some observers therefore believe that WTO leaders prefer to wait cautiously for the political situation to clear up in Washington, where

are vying for the chair of president, before proclaiming a winner.

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For the time being, the organization invokes “ 

 ” to justify this postponement.

The United States continues to support the South Korean candidate.

But Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala does not let himself be defeated so far.

The former CEO of the World Bank said, at the end of October, still believed in his chances. 

Thank you @WTO for today's step in the formal recording of my leading position as Most Likely to Attract Consensus for WTO DG.

Every step is important.

'Look forward to further progress at the appropriate time.

#Positivityalltheway

  Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (@NOIweala) November 6, 2020

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