U.S. moves to block Okonjo-Iweala’s emergence as WTO DG

The United States has told a meeting of the World Trade Organization on Wednesday that it does not back Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next WTO leader, despite cross-regional support for her, sources at the meeting said.

The move, according to Reuters, could undermine the global trade body as it seeks to select a successor to director general Roberto Azevedo, who stepped down in August.

A key group of WTO ambassadors had proposed Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next chief, but any such decision requires a consensus among the 164 WTO members, meaning any of them could block her appointment