Okonjo-Iweala arrives Nigeria on working visit

The new Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, on Saturday, arrived in Nigeria on a one-week working visit, The PUNCH has learnt.

Okonjo-Iweala resumed at the Geneva-based WTO on March 1, 2021, breaking a 26-year record by becoming the first female and first African director-general of the global trade and dispute settlement body.

Addressing newsmen shortly after her arrival via the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja, on Saturday, the 66-year-old former Finance Minister said she is in the country to see how to better assist Nigerian entrepreneurs and improve the economy.

She stressed the need for Nigeria to explore its share of trade in Africa through the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement.

The former World Bank director also said she will meet with the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and a number of ministers in the coming days.

The Nigerian development economist, known for her African print Ankara wears and peculiar headgear usually tilted at a convenient angle, said in a recent interview that she unabashedly “love being African and being Nigerian”.

The PUNCH had also reported that she said her performance as WTO chief between March this year and August 31, 2025, will open doors for Africans and women to lead international organisations.