Who is Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala?

Let’s face it, apart from the usual crowd of trade enthusiasts and corporate and political observers, new appointments to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) don’t exactly stir up massive excitement. At least, not in the way a new Michelle Obama book or a Meghan Markle post might. But with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, things are a little bit different – and for good reason, too.

Firstly, she’s a woman and (in case you hadn’t noticed) she’s Black – which makes her appointment a historic first on both accounts. Secondly, she’s well-respected: she was unanimously selected by the organisation’s 164 members and counts Bill Gates and Joe Biden among her admirers. And thirdly, she’s no stranger to big and difficult jobs, making her well-suited to take on the huge challenges facing the WTO.

With endless articles being drafted, interviews scheduled and photoshoots booked, she’ll be keen to leave the publicity behind and get to work. Her job – like others before it – is hugely challenging. But for a woman who’s life story to date reads like a motivational book, she’ll be willing and ready to do her best.

“I can take hardship. I can sleep on the cold floor anytime.”

Given her rank and experience, you’ll be forgiven for assuming hers was a life of privilege. Not quite. Her drive, it seems, comes from her first-hand experience of real poverty. As a child, she lived with her grandmother in Nigeria until the age of nine, experiencing hardship and trials: “I did everything a village girl would do, fetch water, go to the farm with my grandmother all the chores, I saw what poverty meant, to be poor at first hand”, she said.

As a teenager, she would experience further hardship during the Biafra Civil war of 1967-1970, with her parents losing all their savings. This, in addition to added challenges women face in the work environment, makes her achievements all the more admirable.

Despite a difficult start in life, she would go on to study at Harvard and earn a PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The next step? The World Bank, where in addition to two stints as Nigeria’s finance minister, she would make her name on the world stage.

“I believe that when you find problems, you should also find solutions”

Solving problems is Okonjo-Iweala’s idée fixe, and she’s pretty good at it. As the managing director of the World Bank, she would oversee $81bn in operations – including projects which aided development in developing countries and regions.

As the finance minister of Nigeria, she would lead an effort to reform the country’s economy, which many cite as one of her biggest achievements. In addition to that, she sits on the advisory boards of non-profit organisations, has advised major banks and companies and accumulated admiration and titles to last a lifetime. And if all that wasn’t enough, she’s collected 10 honorary degrees along the way.

In her latest role, she’s going to need all that experience. The job to be done at the WTO, in her own words and those of others, is no easy task.

“Reforming the unreformable”

There are two things to know about the WTO: it’s kind of a big deal and it’s also in a bit of mess. Its job is primarily to ensure that trade between countries is as smooth as possible. From arguments between the US and China and the impact of COVID-19 to the continuous requests from members for reform, the organisation faces some considerable challenges.

She’s focused on putting in place key reforms and improving the body’s pandemic response “so that next time we don’t waste time trying to figure out how to respond”.

Huge challenges, difficult decisions and competing egos. That’s her challenge. How does she plan to do it all?

“I’m a fighter; I’m very focused on what I’m doing and relentless in what I want to achieve, almost to a fault. If you get in my way, you get kicked.”

Check out our profile of Thasunda Brown Duckett, the most powerful black woman in banking.