Who is Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala?
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), an international organization responsible for liberalizing trade, facilitating trade negotiations, and acting as a development organization. She assumed her role in March 2021, becoming the first female and the first African to lead the WTO.
The Current State of Global Trade
According to Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the proportion of global trade conducted under WTO terms has plummeted to 72%, with potential for further decline. This situation marks the most significant disruption in global trade norms since the last 80 years.
Trade Tariffs Under the Trump Administration
The introduction of trade tariffs by former U.S. President Donald Trump has significantly impacted global trade. The WTO’s most-favored-nation (MFN) principle, which requires members to treat all other members equally, has been challenged. As a result, approximately 80% of global trade now occurs outside these WTO terms.
Implications and Concerns
Okonjo-Iweala expressed concern over the questioning of global trade systems and their predictability amidst these disruptions. She highlighted signs of resistance within the international trade community.
Key Questions and Answers
- What is the World Trade Organization (WTO)? The WTO is an international organization that deals with the global rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the 1940s-era General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the 1995 establishment of the WTO, which replaced GATT.
- Who is Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala? Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the Director-General of the WTO, the first woman and African to hold this position. She previously served as Nigeria’s Finance Minister and later as its Foreign Minister.
- What are trade tariffs? Trade tariffs are taxes imposed on imported goods and services, making them more expensive for consumers in the importing country. Tariffs can be used as a tool to protect domestic industries or to retaliate against another country’s policies.
- What is the most-favored-nation (MFN) principle? The MFN principle requires WTO members to grant equal trading rights and conditions to all other members. This means that if one country offers favorable trade terms to another, it must extend those same terms to all other WTO members.
- Why are global trade norms being disrupted? The primary cause of this disruption is the implementation of trade tariffs by former U.S. President Donald Trump, which has led to a significant reduction in global trade conducted under WTO terms.
