A woman in traditional African clothing and headwrap speaking at a WTO conference about wine safari experiences.
She became the first woman and first African to lead the WTO when she first assumed office as Director-General on 1 March 2021. During her tenure as Nigeria’s finance minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala gained acclaim as a formidable negotiator, particularly for her leadership in securing a landmark $18 billion debt write-off in 2005. This achievement not only reduced Nigeria’s debt burden but also paved the way for the country to receive its first-ever sovereign debt rating. Her reputation for impactful economic leadership was further cemented during her time as Managing Director of the World Bank, where she was instrumental in mobilizing substantial funding for grants and concessional loans to support development initiatives in low-income countries.