The East African Community (EAC) has endorsed the region’s candidate Amina Mohamed from Kenya for the position of World Trade Organisation Director General. Mohamed is one of 5 candidates for the job and has among other things pledged to advance an open trading system once given the mandate. According to a letter by Dr. Vincent Biruta, Foreign Affairs Minister dated 04th October 2020 to fellow EAC ministries in his capacity as the EAC Council of Ministers, the candidate received support from the 6 member countries. “I would like to inform you that Ambassador Amina C Mohamed is endorsed as the candidature of the East African Community to the post of the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation,” the Minister’s letter read. The East African Community business leaders in September also endorsed the candidate following her promise to spearhead reforms towards eliminating trade barriers and implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement if selected. Other candidates for the position include Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria, Ms Yoo Myung-hee of South Korea, Mr Mohammad Maziad Al-Tuwaijri of Saudi Arabia, and Dr Liam Fox of the United Kingdom. The Director-General of the WTO is appointed through consensus, requiring candidates to do lots of lobbying. Endorsements like the one by EAC can help a candidate amass that broad agreement among WTO member states. The new director-general of the 164-member WTO will be announced by December this year.
