The United States of America wants the process of finding a new Director-General of the World Trade Organization to be reopened.
BBC reports that the U.S Trade representative, Robert Lighthizer, said during an interview that the WTO needs “someone with real experience in trade, not someone from the World Bank or a development person.”
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria’s candidate for the WTO DG position, had gotten the support of 110 out of 164 member countries to head the organization but the U.S opposed her candidacy.
The World trade Organization operates based on consensus, that is, if one country opposes, a final decision cannot be made.
The doubling down on the rejection of Okonjo-Iweala by the U.S, despite widespread support from other countries, made the WTO postpone the general council meeting to consider the appointment of a new DG till further notice.
