THE World Trade Organization (WTO) announced Thursday, Oct. 9, that South Korea’s trade minister and a Harvard-trained former Nigerian finance minister have qualified as the two finalists to become the next director-general, ensuring a woman in the top job for the first time.
A selection committee said that Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria and Yoo Myung-hee of South Korea qualified for the final round in a race expected to end in the coming weeks. They were picked out of a pool of five candidates.
“Both of the women that are in the final round are remarkably well qualified. This is something on which everyone has agreed,” WTO spokesman Keith Rockwell told reporters. “We’ve been impressed with them from the very beginning.” The Geneva-based WTO’s General Council, made up of envoys from the 164-member body, eliminated Amina Mohamed, a former trade minister from Kenya; Mohammad Maziad Al-Tuwaijri, a Saudi former economy minister, and British former International Trade Secretary and Brexit proponent Liam Fox.
“Deeply grateful and honored to be selected for the final round in the selection process of the next @WTO Director General!” tweeted Yoo, who has a law degree from Vanderbilt University. “We need a capable and experienced new leader who can rebuild trust and restore relevance of the @WTO. I look forward to your continued support! Thank you!!!” Okonjo-Iweala on Twitter thanked WTO members for their support and wrote that she was “happy to be in the final round.” A previous round had cut the list of candidates from eight to five. The winner is expected to be announced no later than early November. (AP)