Ngozie Okonjo-Iweala

thumb|Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala takes over as new WTO Director-General, 1 March 2021 Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (born 13 June 1954) is a Nigerian-American economist, fair trade leader, environmental sustainability advocate, human welfare champion, sustainable finance maven and global development expert. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala GCON (/əŋˈɡoʊzi əˈkoʊndʒoʊ ɪˈweɪlə/ (born 13 June 1954) is a Nigerian economist, who has been serving as the Director-General of the World Trade Organization since March 2021. She is married to Ikemba Iweala and they had four children. Notably, she is the first woman and first African to lead the World Trade Organization as Director-General.She sits on boards of: Danone, Standard Chartered Bank, MINDS: Mandela Institute for Development Studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, One Campaign, GAVI: Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, Rockefeller Foundation, R4D: Results for Development, ARC: African Risk Capacity and Earthshot Prize plus others.She also previously sat on the Twitter Board of Directors, and stepped down in February, 2021 in connection with her appointment as Director General of the World Trade Organization. Quotes The idea [the government's 'You Win' campaign] is that instead of young people in Nigeria waiting to get employment, they should create their own jobs and employ their peers and employ other people. World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2014 So we were not able to save when we should have. That is why you find that Nigeria is now in the situation it is in. Statement she made to debunk rumors about the quotes from her new book (13 May 2019) We have a choice. Either we converge downwards by allowing the virus to drag us all back down, or we converge upwards by vaccinating the world. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala speaking at the virtual White House Global COVID-19 Submiy on 22 September 2021 Investing in women is smart economics, and investing in girls, catching them upstream is even smarter economics. No one can fight corruption for Nigerians except Nigerians. Everyone has to be committed from the top to the bottom to fight it. Transparency International "Anti-Corruption Fighters" It's about our common good, because these variants will come back if people are not vaccinated. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala speaks on COVID-19 vaccine Africa represents our fastest-growing region in the world. If you want to be relevant, you need to be in this part of the world. on Africa rising It’s not just about empowering women, it’s about economic growth. she talks on bank on poor women and phones to drive growth in Africa. Unless we can make access to finance easier for women in their businesses, we will be missing out on a significant portion of growth within our economies. Compare non retiring income with investment such as bonds and fixed income etc.Annuity is low risk venture, fixed rate and guaranteed income for life and dependable old age. she talks on investment and savings. “Africa’s opportunity lies not in aid — but in adding value, building trust, and using our resources wisely,” Africa’s opportunity not aid, says Okonjo-Iweala the national newspaper (May 6, 2025) “Our critical minerals are in demand — but instead of giving them away raw, we must negotiate smartly, add value locally, create jobs, and become a true hub of global manufacturing and innovation" Africa’s opportunity not aid, says Okonjo-Iweala the national newspaper (May 6, 2025) “Even solving one problem or building one enterprise can have ripple effects across the continent. Everyone has a role to play in building Africa’s future,” “Events like this roundtable are vital platforms to foster collaboration, deepen trust, and unlock the entrepreneurial potential that exists both within Africa and among its global diaspora. It was an honor to join this important dialogue and help shape conversations that will drive long-term impact,” Africa’s opportunity not aid, says Okonjo-Iweala the national newspaper (May 6, 2025) “Diaspora investment is not just about capital; it’s about building ecosystems and reshaping Africa’s economic narrative. We are proud to create a platform where action-oriented conversations drive real change.” Africa’s opportunity not aid, says Okonjo-Iweala the national newspaper (May 6, 2025) “Africa really needs to change its mindset about access to aid. We should begin to see it as a thing of the past,” https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/02/ditch-foreign-aid-or-remain-trapped-okonjo-iweala-warns-african-leaders/? van guard “Our focus should be on two key areas — attracting investment and mobilising domestic resources.” https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/02/ditch-foreign-aid-or-remain-trapped-okonjo-iweala-warns-african-leaders/? van guard “The biggest pension funds are in South Africa, followed by Nigeria, Kenya, Morocco, Botswana, and Namibia. These resources are hugely significant, and we need to find ways to tap into them,” https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/02/ditch-foreign-aid-or-remain-trapped-okonjo-iweala-warns-african-leaders/? van guard “At present, these institutions have a combined balance sheet of about $70 billion, but our infrastructure needs alone exceed $200 billion annually. Instead of looking outward for financial support, we must strengthen our own institutions,” https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/02/ditch-foreign-aid-or-remain-trapped-okonjo-iweala-warns-african-leaders/? van guard “As you said, some good reforms are being pursued right now. I think they need to yield into job creation,” https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “This is what I also said to His Excellency, Mr President, that we have to move from stabilisation to creating jobs because that’s where we are lacking.” https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “What I’d like to see us doing is continue to try to attract investment into the country because there’s an opportunity now to attract all these supply chains,” https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) So if there’s one thing I’d like to see, everything we can do to show Nigeria as a country worthy of investing in, that’s what we should be doing. https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “And we should deliberately have a strategy to go after those investments, to go after investors, to go to China, the United Nations (UN) — whatever it takes to let them come and invest in our country.” https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “So a lot of the diversification is away from China into Asia and India is another move,” “We should attract some of that. I’m not saying all, but a good sizable chunk. Let’s build solar panels in Nigeria because we’re importing, but we can also manufacture. https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “We have the renewable capacity, the fashion thing, let them come and invest. Every time we buy a piece of wax, I spend time sometimes to see where it is made.” https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “And then, and all the shiny new textiles that we’re all wearing now, I don’t think they’re made in Nigeria. A lot of them are imported,” https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “Let’s try to attract them. So that’s what I would do. This is really my passion and pharmaceuticals, there’s a chance there as well.” https://www.thecable.ng/okonjo-iweala-to-fg-move-from-economic-stabilisation-to-job-creation-attracting-global-investments/ .thecable.ng (January 22, 2026 ) “I don’t think we will go back to where we were. If I were a business and a policy maker, I would be planning against the world that is not going to go back to where it was,” Okonjo-Iweala: Global trade won’t go back to pre-disruption era — countries must build resilience thecable.ng (January 23, 2026) “A world that will have built-in uncertainties in it, and therefore I need to plan for how I am going to be resilient with my business or my country.” Okonjo-Iweala: Global trade won’t go back to pre-disruption era — countries must build resilience thecable.ng (January 23, 2026) “72 percent of world trade is still going on WTO terms. So, the system is resilient,” Okonjo-Iweala: Global trade won’t go back to pre-disruption era — countries must build resilience thecable.ng (January 23, 2026) “I may not agree with the unilateral actions on trade that have been taken. But I certainly agree with some of the diagnosis that things are not going well and things need to change, and that is why the WTO are very keen on reforming,” Okonjo-Iweala: Global trade won’t go back to pre-disruption era — countries must build resilience thecable.ng (January 23, 2026) “As disheartening as the news often is these days, from Sudan to Greenland, I am convinced that this crisis presents opportunities for the continent,” Africa must stop begging for aid, become global investment hub — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (February 3, 2026) “But we should be looking to manufacture these items at home, not just to import them. This will create more jobs for our young people,” Africa must stop begging for aid, become global investment hub — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (February 3, 2026) “And if we leverage our abundant solar and wind energy potential, we can envision a future of African regional supply chains with mineral processing powered by clean energy — good for jobs, good for growth prospects, and good for the planet,” Africa must stop begging for aid, become global investment hub — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (February 3, 2026) “As disheartening as the news often is these days, from Sudan to Greenland, I am convinced that this crisis presents opportunities for the continent,” Africa must stop begging for aid, become global investment hub — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (February 3, 2026 ) “But we should be looking to manufacture these items at home, not just to import them. This will create more jobs for our young people,” Africa must stop begging for aid, become global investment hub — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (February 3, 2026 ) “And if we leverage our abundant solar and wind energy potential, we can envision a future of African regional supply chains with mineral processing powered by clean energy — good for jobs, good for growth prospects, and good for the planet,” Africa must stop begging for aid, become global investment hub — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (February 3, 2026 ) "The ​world order and multilateral system we used to ​know has irrevocably changed. We will not get ⁠it back...We must look to the future," WTO chief: world order has irrevocably changed reuters.com(March 26, 2026) "Lack ⁠of transparency leads to lack of trust, and that breeds suspicions of unfairness and anti-competitive behaviours," WTO chief: world order has irrevocably changed reuters.com(March 26, 2026) “Japan should play an active role” in reforms, Okonjo-Iweala said, because the country is an “important middle power.” WTO chief urges Japan to lead the charge in reforming its rules .japantimes.co.jp (May 20, 2026) “I would like to see a reform of WTO rules ... to be fit for the 21st century.” WTO chief urges Japan to lead the charge in reforming its rules .japantimes.co.jp (May 20, 2026) “Global trade is going through some of the biggest disruptions in 80 years, and these are very difficult times,” WTO chief urges Japan to lead the charge in reforming its rules .japantimes.co.jp (May 20, 2026) I always say that the world is facing the greatest disruptions to global rules and to the multilateral trading system that it has faced in the past eight decades. There's tremendous uncertainty, which is not good for business. And multilateralism is at the weakest that I've seen it in a long time meaning that organisations like the UN, the World Bank, the WTO, the IMF, and so on, and so many of the multilateral groups have been in a situation of attack where they've been weakened. So with respect to multilateral trade rules and multilateralism in general, the world is not in a very good place. As we have seen, there's been a shift to more power-based rather than rules-based systems. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) On the trade side, it has manifested with one of my members that has taken a lot of unilateral actions with respect to tariffs. Some of the actions are not only about trade alone. That's the other thing I want to tell you. The reason it's very difficult to deal with these issues is that trade instruments are sometimes being used to tackle non-trade problems. So there could be a political problem somewhere. You say we'll put X percent tariffs on you because you didn't do things this way. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) It could be an immigration issue. We'll put X percent tariffs on you for this. It could be drugs. It could be anything. That makes it very difficult to handle from a WTO standpoint because there are so many issues bundled into the use of a trade instrument which we are not capable of dealing with. So countries that are weak feel very vulnerable under these circumstances. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We saw that in the 1930s, which led to the Great Depression and the world really went into a very bad place economically. So my advice and our advice from the WTO to the members is don't do tit-for-tat. Even when the U.S. and China started, our plea to both of them is it's bigger than you. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) If you both continue this tit-for-tat, world trade will fragment even more. Weaker countries will be forced to join and take sides because that's what's going to happen. They'll come to you and say, well, you know, I trade with you, if you join my side... and what will happen? That will fragment world trade. And we already modelled that if the world fragments into two trading blocs, you're going to see a 7 per cent loss in global GDP in the longer term and that is too much. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) It is listening to that no tit-for-tat advice. What happened is countries listened. It wasn't just our advice. We were working in the background a lot to give this advice. There was very little tit-for-tat and that, kind of, brought everybody to focus on making sure they practise and use the global rules as much as possible. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) Today, what I can tell you is that in spite of all these disruptions, global trade has been very resilient. 72 per cent of world trade still goes on under WTO terms. And people are shocked when I say that. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We have a methodology for calculating it. We've not changed that. 72 per cent of world trade, meaning that countries have realised that both weak and strong, but especially the middle powers-Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, UK- that trading according to global rules is more to the benefit of their businesses, their countries, than the fight with each other. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) I think, yes. I mean, people say that I'm excited about digital trade, services trade and then within digital, there's digitally delivered services trade, which is all the electronic transmissions and things delivered over the Internet. This means music, education services, health, and business services. When you are providing services electronically to some customer somewhere, you're trading and it's categorised as digitally delivered services trade. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) It is the fastest-growing segment of trade at almost 6 per cent per year. The reason I'm excited about it is if you look at the type of people who are involved, younger people, women. This provides them the means with which they can trade and reach other parts of the world in a way that perhaps they were not able to do before. So I think it shows a lot of promise. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) The only issue we have is making sure that the digital physical infrastructure, the connectivity, is there to be able to make this trade work. We find that in Africa, our youth are the most prevalent on the Internet. Of course, they are connected much more than the older people. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) But if we don't make sure that we work hard on the digital infrastructure, we will not be able to expand the benefits of what promises to be a very good means. It means you can sit here in Nigeria, you don't have to go anywhere, and you can deliver your intellectual services elsewhere. Look at how well our music people are doing all over the world. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) That music streaming is trade. Videos, films, fashion, so much of the creative industry, which is now two per cent of our GDP here, and employs hundreds of thousands of young people. A lot of it is digitally developed. So that's the hope. If we could really push this aspect of trade it promises employment for many of our young people. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) But you ask me, is the WTO in a place to be able to push this? The answer is we are not where we should be. I think we have gaps in our rules that need to be filled and that is why the WTO needs reform. I'm the DG and I'm a very big spokesperson for the WTO. The members pride themselves that it is a member-driven organisation. You know, we need reform. We have the first set of rules for e-commerce that just came into being. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) It's a plurilateral agreement with 67 of our members. But we need to go much further and faster, because AI is here and things are moving very fast, technologically. So we are not there yet, but we are working on it. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) It's a plurilateral agreement with 67 of our members. But we need to go much further and faster, because AI is here and things are moving very fast, technologically. So we are not there yet, but we are working on it. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We need to make sure that the WTO and the AfCFTA work in tandem and buttress each other. We found that women who trade externally make almost three times more than those who trade domestically. So, if we can empower women, give them access market access externally, the knowledge that they may lack to access external markets, finance and all the things we talked about, they will make three times more than what they're making. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) What we set out to do at the WTO is to create a programme that enables us to do that and we started the Women Exporters in the Digital Economy Fund. We started by raising $50 million to do that. It's a global competition. We first asked countries to compete. Four won. We picked four, and Nigeria was one of them. So I was very proud. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) I have to tell everybody I had nothing to do with it. Then we came down to the country and conducted a competition, and we were able to pick over 100-and-something women. Now we have 300-and-something from all over the world. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) This is just the first batch. The idea is they get grants anywhere from $5,000 to $30,000, 18 months of technical assistance free, accompanying them an giving them information so they can access markets, whatever their business is, and enhance the quality of their products. One of the problems we have is meeting standards when we want to sell abroad. We just accompany them until they can penetrate that market and do what they need to do. My dream is to keep replenishing the fund and reaching more and more women here and all over the world. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) Resilience is the ability to come out on the other side strong even when houlone have been battered. Global trade was created for interdependence in the belief that when countries are interdependent on each other for trade, there's less likely to be conflict and war. So it wasn't just about prosperity and incomes and improving living standards. It was also about peace to some extent. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) And to that extent, I think the global trading system has delivered until now, people must not forget it. It has issues, problems, but it largely delivered. There has been no major world war since the creation of this system. There have been conflicts here and there, but no major world war. That's number one. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) Number two, it has lifted 1.5 billion people out of poverty. It has contributed to that. Even when you take China out of it, you still see a positive effect of the global trading system. So these are things we should remember. But in the process, some things happened that I think have exposed vulnerabilities in the system and that's what you're referring to. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We found out during COVID that 10 countries in the world export 80 per cent of the world's vaccines. And when the epidemic came, what happened? Africa was left waiting in the queue for vaccines because we import more than 95 per cent of our vaccines and 90 per cent of other pharmaceuticals. We don't make them. So we were left in the queue and I believe many died. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) That is a vulnerability. Is the world resilient when you need these medicines that there's a concentration of vaccine manufacture and export in a few countries? That's one. Two, what I call over-dependences. The U.S., part of why it's doing the unilateral actions on tariff that it does, the U.S. woke up and said yesterday, there's some countries that are over-dependent on us for markets. They rely too much on the U.S. market and they don't reciprocate. Some of their criticisms of the world trading system are right. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) Not all, but many are correct. So we shouldn't dismiss what they say out of hand because we're upset with their unilateralism. They have some points. They feel there are countries over-dependent on them for markets. Many countries are overdependent on China for critical supplies. What happens when there are these over-dependences? They can be weaponised. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We need to think about these things and say, how do we build better global resilience? And that's where you've made a very good point. There's some over-dependences that have built up over time that we now need to do something about, otherwise we're vulnerable. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) On this, I think for Nigeria and Africa, there actually is an opportunity for us. Why don't we try to attract some of these supply chains to decentralise our country and our continent? There is an opportunity of critical minerals and renewable energy, for instance, a golden opportunity. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We have 30 per cent of the world's critical mineralson the continent. We have our renewable energy potential. Wecan process these things in a clean waywhich is good for the environment.But we need to compete to attract those supply chainsand that will bolster us and make the world more resilientat the same time. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We need to attract vaccine manufacturing, and we are actively working on it with WHO, by the way. We have a tripartite agreement with WIPO, the World Intellectual Property Organisation, the WTO and the WHO, to try to support more manufacturing and more supply chains in the pharmaceutical area. Rwanda is a hub now. Senegal is a hub. We are trying to get Nigeria to be a hub, just as an example. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) AfCFTA is one of the best instruments the continent could have put in place. The problem we have is that intra-Africa trade is still only 20 per cent. We moved from 16 to 20. E.U, intra-EU trade is 60 per cent, just for you to have a bit of an example of what to look at. So the policy mistake to avoid, you said it here already, political will to put in place the basics that are needed to make it work. We had professor Ladan who talked about movement of people and goods. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) If you don't have the ability for people to move within the area, then you're just hampering. People, even in formal trade, they'll get to the border, they have to go through so much just to cross over. Basic infrastructure. West African road and rail connecting different parts of the continent, but they keep being on paper. None of them have been realised. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) The only thing we are seeing is the Lobito corridor, which is financed by a consortium of developed countries and development finance organisations. We need more rail, more roads, more connecting different parts of the continent. If we don't have it, we also need faster, sharper customs procedures. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) Lorries should not be waiting three days to cross the border. Some of them carrying perishable goods. We have Africa 50. It's two things to do. First, the bureaucratic requirements. These are kind of stroke of the pen type of things. The will to digitise customs and move things faster. Can we do that? We need to accelerate implementation. Second, can we both pick two or three critical projects that connect the continent with physical infrastructure and make them work instead of talking about economy. Finally, air. We are not even connected properly with respect to air transportation. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) We had a ministerial meeting in Yaounde and I wanted to come home from Yaounde to Abuja. I couldn't find a flight. The quickest way for me to come here was to go to Ethiopia. On the day I wanted to travel to Addis, and then Addis, here, eight hours. Does that make any sense for a one-hour flight? In the end when a friend of mine heard I was stranded and wanted to come to Abuja, he said, I will send a flight to collect you. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) It took one hour, 20 minutes for something I would have spent eight hours. We are not serious if we want to do AfCFTA and cannot connect ourselves even by air. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) Trust. When countries do not trust each other, it leads to misreading intentions and that can lead to conflict and missed opportunities with respect to development or any other things you could cooperate on. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) I would want them to read Why Nations Fail because it says all about institutions, the failure of institutions and the failure of governance and how leadership in our continent is what is holding us back. We have what it takes, but we somehow don't get it right. So that's the book that I would want and Reforming the Unreformable. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) You can only lead well if you know how to listen. Because if you don't have followers, are you a leader? I did my very first managerial job at the World Bank. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) I was a young manager. My first managerial job was to lead a division that had 19 men all much older than me. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) They had hired a very fabulous division chief before me who was then promoted to lead a bigger division but they wanted him and they didn't like it. All 19 of them and only one African. I could see the hostility. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) I thought I have to find a way to win them over and the only way I could win them over was to listen. What is it that they think I cannot deliver? And to be humble- to listen to the things they thought I couldn't do so I could either reassure them or show them I could do it. Nigeria: Okonjo-Iweala - My Dream Is to Keep Replenishing the Weide Fund to Reach More Women All Over the World Allafrica (3 August 2026) “We lack a maintenance culture in the country. I have to say that. I am Nigerian, but we need that,” Poor maintenance culture undermining Nigeria’s development, says Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (August 3, 2026) “We need better ports and digital infrastructure, and lower trade costs. Execution is what matters, and successful execution requires focus. It requires prioritisation,” Poor maintenance culture undermining Nigeria’s development, says Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (August 3, 2026) “The single biggest issue—the trust of countries in the world in each other has deteriorated because countries are seeing actions by those they thought were trustworthy that are no longer believable. This current mistrust is not good for the world. Mistrust leads to uncertainty, which is very bad for business. Global mistrust hurting business, trade — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (August 1, 2026) “I think we can recover because we don’t have a choice.” Global mistrust hurting business, trade — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (August 1, 2026) “In spite of all these disruptions, global trade has been very resilient. Seventy-two per cent of world trade still goes on WTO terms, and people are shocked when I say that.” Global mistrust hurting business, trade — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (August 1, 2026) “The opportunities for Africa excite me, but I am also dreading that we will miss those opportunities,” Global mistrust hurting business, trade — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (August 1, 2026) “The failure of institutions and the failure of governance and leadership on our continent is what is holding us back. We have what it takes, but we somehow don’t get it right,” Global mistrust hurting business, trade — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (August 1, 2026) “I had been brought in from the World Bank to help straighten up and strengthen Nigeria’s weak finances, including getting rid of the $30 billion of the country’s debt owed to the Paris Club. To do this work, I knew Nigeria would have to undertake serious economic reforms of the type that would demand understanding and sacrifices from Nigerians,” How Nigeria secured $30bn Paris Club debt relief — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (July 29, 2026) “One important component in my mind then was that we would need a crack communications person or team to help us reach Nigerians, to explain all of this in simple language. That is where Paul came in,” How Nigeria secured $30bn Paris Club debt relief — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (July 29, 2026) “I can say without fear of contradiction that we wouldn’t have had as much success with the reform programme if we had not had a masterful steering of communications from Paul,” How Nigeria secured $30bn Paris Club debt relief — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (July 29, 2026) “Reform is not just about writing new laws and enforcing new policies. It’s about persuading people, explaining trade-offs and building enough trust that governments can keep pushing through obstacles,” How Nigeria secured $30bn Paris Club debt relief — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (July 29, 2026) “Until Nigerians can overcome the ethnic, religious and regional divides embedded in our society to forge a social compact that agrees key directions for the nation, directions that remain steady no matter who is in government, I think Nigeria will find it difficult to move forward at the pace required to create enduring prosperity for our people,” How Nigeria secured $30bn Paris Club debt relief — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (July 29, 2026) “I believe in talent from every corner of Nigeria. There’s no place in Nigeria that doesn’t have talented people. I don’t care what part of the country you come from. I just wanted you to do your job and do it professionally,” How Nigeria secured $30bn Paris Club debt relief — Okonjo-Iweala punchng.com (July 29, 2026) “I just want to start by congratulating SSK on this wonderful occasion. Congratulations to all the partners and the staff. Please give them a round of applause,” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “I can tell you that in spite of all these disruptions, global trade has been very resilient,” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “We have a methodology for calculating it and we’ve not changed that. Seventy-two percent of world trade… meaning that countries have realised that both weak and strong, but especially the middle powers like Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, UK, that trading according to global rules is more to the benefit of their businesses, their countries than a fight with each other.” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “My advice and our advice from the WTO to the members, don’t do tit-for-tat. Even when the US and China started, our plea to both of them was, it’s bigger than you. If you continue this tit-for-tat, world trade will fragment even more,” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “Weaker countries will be forced to join and take sides because that’s what’s going to happen. They’ll come to you and say, well, you know, I trade with you, you join my side, you join my side between China and the US. And what will happen? That will fragment world trade.” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “We realised that one thing that would make us stand out, and that would make any law firm stand out then and now, would be to build a firm that has, you know, embedded in its philosophy, in its policies, a need for proper succession planning. So that was very positive, because we wanted something that would be built on trust and integrity.” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “We saw lawyers as mediators, effectively, you know, filling a mediatory role, almost like a priest, if you recall, the name that, what Kӧhn stands for, you know, it’s the name of a priest. Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “So even through all the disputes of life and practice, I think that that bond has remained. But what stood out clearly was integrity, and that has been a test of time. Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “So here we are, 20 years on, and the bonds of friendship and the bonds of comradeship and brotherhood still stand strong. That’s why I like integrity. I’d like you to say a few words, if I could use the word integrity. Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “We run our lap, and then we hand over to those who continue from us. So, 20 years today this year, our expectation is that those principles that we’re trying, you know, will continue into the future. And eventually, some of us are on the verge of retirement.” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “You started with three partners. You’ve now graduated to nine, and 70-odd lawyers in your firm,” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “So 20 years later, we’re working our way back to the highest international rating that Nigeria has ever had. Thankfully, the current administration is working towards it.” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “When you consider what you have achieved in the last 20 years, it will pale into nothing compared to the next 20 years because the partnership has shown what to expect.” Okonjo-Iweala hails ‘resilience of global trade’ as SSK marks 20th anniversary in Lagos thecable.ng (July 31, 2026) “We have come up with a concept at the WTO that we call re-globalisation. We believe that we need to reimagine globalisation and reimagine value and supply chains in a way that builds greater resilience for the world instead of being dependent on one geography or one place.” Okonjo-Iweala: Countries must reimagine globalisation, diversify production to strengthen supply chains .thecable.ng (October 12, 2026) “Global trade is under tremendous stress and that is because many members of the WTO are beginning to feel that the rules no longer work for them the same way that they used to work in the past,” Okonjo-Iweala: Countries must reimagine globalisation, diversify production to strengthen supply chains .thecable.ng (October 12, 2026) “The dissatisfaction is leading to unilateral behavior on the part of some.“ Okonjo-Iweala: Countries must reimagine globalisation, diversify production to strengthen supply chains .thecable.ng (October 12, 2026) “Making it a US and China problem is not recognising that many emerging markets and poorer developing countries also have problems with the system,” Okonjo-Iweala: Countries must reimagine globalisation, diversify production to strengthen supply chains .thecable.ng (October 12, 2026) "10 Quotes from Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, The First Female Leader of the WTO" "10 Quotes from Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, The First Female Leader of the WTO", forwardladies.com I’ve developed my own style. It’s a colourful one. It’s African, and it is me. There is always guilt. Just make it work. If you have a sense of purpose that drives you, then aim high and become a leader and make room as you go. There is no right way to be a woman leader. Be true to yourself. Get anyone you know talking about gender stereotypes. These false assumptions cannot survive being held up to the light of day. Don’t take a backward step. Don’t shy away from taking up space in the world. Don’t assume you are too junior or that people are too busy. Reach out and network. Investing in women is smart economics, and investing in girls, catching them upstream is even smarter economics. I’m told, I’m like my father, and he was the most wonderful man. But I think he was gentler than me. I believe that when you find problems, you should also find solutions. In the 73 years of GATT WTO, I am honoured to be First Woman and First African to lead. But now the real work begins. Ready to tackle the challenges of WTO. Forget Business as usual! “Nigeria does have a problem with corruption. And so do many other countries, including developed countries. I don’t like the fact that when people mention the name Nigeria, the next thing they say is corruption.” “Nigeria does have a problem with corruption” | Read Transcript & Watch the Interview of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on Amanpour Bella Niaja (April 18, 2013) “On my first day I sat in that chair and said Oh My God I can't do this. There are just too many things: we have to reform the budget, to fight corruption, do this, do that. But once I had set out the matrix, which became like a bible, I suddenly got a burst of confidence.” Transcript of interview with Mrs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigerian Finance Minister The independent News (16 May 2006 ) “One of the first big things we did was to delink the budget from the oil price ... Any surplus above that we saved — and we announce to Nigerians how much we had saved each quarter.” Transcript of interview with Mrs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigerian Finance Minister The independent News (16 May 2006 ) External links Full biograpny and CV (WTO site) Category:1954 births Category:Women from the United States Category:Women from Nigeria Category:Economists from the United States Category:People from Nigeria