Amina Mohamed nominated for the position of Director-General of the World Trade Organisation

Kenya has nominated CS Amb. Amina Mohamed for the position of director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The announcement came through the organisation’s website and indicated that the nomination was submitted on 7th July 2020. Amb. Amina will now contest for the position against five (5) other candidates:

1. Mr. Seade Kuri from Mexico
2. Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala from Nigeria
3. Mr Abdel-Hamid Mamdouh from Egypt
4. Mr Tudor Ulianovsch from Moldova
5. Ms Yoo Myung-hee from the republic of Korea

All the candidates are set to meet with the General Council for an opportunity to make a brief presentation including the vision they have for the World Trade Organisation which will be followed by a Q & A session.

This is not the first time that the Sports CS has also contested previously for the position in 2013 but lost to the current Director-General. Kenya submitted her nomination first on 21st December 2012 where she hoped to succeed the then Director-General Mr. Pascal Lemy. The nomination was followed by international diplomatic pitching in a bid to build concensus. However, the seat went to the current Director-General Mr. Roberto Azevedo.

The process of appointment is rigorous and involves wide consultations with members of the organisation in a bid to identify the candidate around whom consensus can be built. In cases where the Council is unable to reach consensus, voting is adopted as a last resort.

A win for Amb. Mohamed is expected to raise Kenya’s standing in the globe and will be of immense benefit especially after the country recently clinched a seat at the United Nations Security Council.