Studies done in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic suggested women may be better leaders than men in critical situations.

With COVID-19 tipped to accentuate the growing deglobalisation trend and rising trade barriers, the World Trade Organization is set to have a female leader for the first time in its history.

In a statement last week, the Geneva-based body announced that the highly competitive post for the next WTO Director-General has been sealed by these two female candidates: Nigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and South Korea's Yoo Myung-hee.

One among the two women of colour will replace Roberto Azevedo, the former WTO Director-General, who resigned after the heated trade war between United States and China, before his tenure ended.

Experts said Okonjo-Iweala and Yoo are both highly qualified for the position and have political and international experience.

Okonjo-Iweala is a reputed economist and had a short tenure as the Finance minister of Nigeria. She has spent a long tenure of 25 years at the World Bank. In 2018, she was added to the Board of Twitter (TWTR).

She is also a chairman of the board of the international vaccines alliance, Gavi.

If finalised for the job, Okonjo-Iweala would also be the first African to be director general of the WTO.

Happy to be in the final round of the @wto DG campaign. Thanks, WTO members for your continued support of my candidacy. I could not have made it without the prayers and support of all Nigerians and friends around the world. Thank you @MBuhari and all my friends. Aluta continua!

— Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (@NOIweala) October 8, 2020

Elated by the announcement of her nomination, Okonjo tweeted, "Happy to be in the final round of the @WTO

Yoo presently acts as South Korea's Minister for Trade, and is also the first woman to do so. She has a prolific 25-year career in trade. Additionally, she has been involved with the WTO in Korea since 1995. She also shortly worked at the Korean Embassy in Beijing, China. Yoo completed her master's in public policy from Korea's Seoul National University.

In her tweet thanking the WTO, Yoo wrote,"Deeply grateful and honored to be selected for the final round" in the selection process for the next director-general."

Deeply grateful and honored to be selected for the final round in the selection process of the next @WTO Director General!

We need a capable & experienced new leader who can rebuild trust and restore relevance of the @WTO. I look forward to your continued support! Thank you!!! https://t.co/Gz94jTzgzB— Yoo Myung-hee (@YooMyunghee1) October 8, 2020

First Published:Oct 13, 2020 8:50 PM IST