Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala along with South Korea’s Yoo Myung-hee are widely reported to have been selected as the finalists in the contest to lead the World Trade Organization . The two edged out three other candidates, including Kenya’s Amina Mohamed.
“By advancing two women to the final round of the selection process, the WTO will likely have the first female director general in its 25-year history,” Bloomberg reported late Wednesday. A formal announcement is expected on October 8.
Okonjo-Iweala served as finance minister under Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo (2003-2006) and Goodluck Jonathan (2011-2015). She also served briefly as Obasanjo’s foreign minister. In between those tours, she was managing director at the World Bank, where she worked for 25 years.
The contest pitted two powerhouse women from east and west Africa. Mohamed, who currently Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Heritage & Culture, is a former foreign secretary who also headed three other ministries.