The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has made her first visit to Nigeria since she assumed office.
She was received upon her arrival in the country on Saturday by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Nasir Sani-Gwarzo.
Okonjo-Iweala told reporters in Abuja, the nation’s capital that her visit to Nigeria was to show appreciation to President Muhammadu Buhari for the support accorded her.
She said she is also in the country to see how to better assist Nigerian entrepreneurs and improve the economy.
Okonjo-Iweala stressed the need for Nigeria to explore its share of trade in Africa through the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement, ACFTA.
And to do that we have to improve our investments and add value to some of our products, because the AfCFTA is a unique opportunity for us to be able to engage commercially with other African nations to boost export.
“When you boost export, you create more jobs. We are also going to talk about the digital economy and how young people are accessing the internet for e-commerce, those are some of the issues and more activities we can create to support that,” she said.
According to the programme of her visit, on Monday, March 15, she will be meeting with the President and the Chief of Staff to the President at the presidential villa.
She will later hold a meeting with the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, and Minister of state, Mariam Katagum at the ministry.
On Tuesday, March 16, Okonjo-Iweala will meet with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, after which she will meet the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, among others.
She will proceed to a meeting with the Captains of Industry, which will be followed by a Press Conference at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.
Furthermore, on Wednesday, March 17, the WTO D-G will hold a meeting with the Women Entrepreneurs, SheTrade, and operators of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
This will be followed by a press conference with some ministers.
A dinner and reception in honour of Okonjo-Iweala will hold at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, to round-off the visit
Okonjo-Iweala’s visit to Nigeria comes about a month after she was confirmed as the Director-General of the global trade organisation.
As the first woman and first African to lead the international body, her term began on March 1 and would last until the next four years.
The term, which is renewable, will expire on August 31, 2025.
