Global trade resilient despite crises, 72% still under WTO rules — Okonjo-Iweala

… Hails SSK at 20th
…. Urges Nigeria, Africa to seize digital trade opportunities
By Chioma Obinna

Despite escalating geopolitical tensions, tariff disputes and disruptions to the multilateral trading system, 72 per cent of global trade still takes place under World Trade Organisation, WTO, rules, Director-General of the organisation, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has said.

Okonjo-Iweala, who spoke in Lagos at the 20th anniversary celebration of Streamsowers & Köhn, SSK, urged countries, particularly weaker economies, to resist retaliatory trade actions, warning that a global trade war could further fragment the world economy and worsen uncertainty for businesses.

The WTO boss, who was a special guest at the event with the theme, “Nigeria’s Path to Economic Resilience & Investment Leadership in a Volatile Global Environment,” said the world was experiencing its most serious disruption to global rules and multilateralism in eight decades.

She, however, said the resilience of global trade showed that countries still recognised the value of rules-based commerce.

“In spite of all these disruptions, global trade has been very resilient. 72 per cent of world trade still goes on on WTO terms,” she said.

Okonjo-Iweala cautioned countries against a tit-for-tat approach to trade disputes, particularly the tariff confrontation between major economies, saying such retaliatory measures could force weaker countries to take sides and fragment global commerce.

“My advice and our advice from the WTO to the members, don’t do tit-for-tat. Even when the US and China started, our plea to both of them is, it’s bigger than you.

“If you continue this tit-for-tat, world trade will fragment even more. Weaker countries will be forced to join and take sides. And what will happen? That will fragment world trade.”

She said modelling by the WTO showed that if the global economy fragmented into two major trading blocs, the world could suffer a seven per cent loss in global GDP in the long run.

The WTO DG said the disruptions in global supply chains also presented Nigeria and Africa with an opportunity to attract manufacturing and processing activities, particularly in pharmaceuticals, critical minerals and renewable energy.

According to her, Africa holds about 30 per cent of the world’s critical minerals and has significant renewable energy potential, giving the continent an opportunity to become an important part of global supply chains.

“In the midst of all these disruptions, I see opportunity. Why don’t we try to attract some of these supply chains to our country and our continent?

“We have 30 per cent of the world’s critical minerals on the continent. We have our renewable energy potential, so we can process these things in a clean way, which is good for the environment.”

She said Nigeria should also position itself as a hub for vaccine and pharmaceutical manufacturing, noting that the country’s heavy dependence on imported medicines had been exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We need to attract vaccine manufacturing. We are actively working on it with WHO. Rwanda is a hub now. Senegal is a hub. We are trying to get Nigeria to be a hub.”
Okonjo-Iweala also called for stronger intra-African trade, describing the African Continental Free Trade Area, AfCFTA, as one of the best instruments available to the continent.
She lamented that intra-African trade currently accounts for only about 20 per cent, compared with about 60 per cent within the European Union.
The WTO chief identified poor infrastructure, cumbersome border procedures and weak transport connections as major obstacles to trade on the continent.
“We need more rail, more roads, more connecting different parts of the continent. If we don’t have it, we also need faster, sharper customs procedures.”
She also expressed concern over the lack of direct air connections between African capitals, recalling that she once had to travel through Addis Ababa to return from Yaoundé to Abuja because there was no direct flight.

“We are not serious if we want to do AfCFTA. We cannot connect ourselves even by air.”
Okonjo-Iweala said digital trade was among the fastest-growing areas of global commerce, creating opportunities for young people and women to provide services internationally without leaving their countries.

She said digitally delivered services, including education, healthcare, consulting, legal services, music, films and fashion, were growing at almost six per cent annually.

The WTO, she disclosed, had also established the Women in the Digital Economy Fund, initially raising $50 million to support women entrepreneurs with grants and technical assistance.

Nigeria was among four countries initially selected for the programme, she said, with more than 100 Nigerian women already benefiting from the initiative.

Earlier, Managing Partner of SSK, Tamuno Atekebo, recalled how the firm began in 2006 from a modest office and has since evolved into a major law firm with a functional physical and virtual library, offices in different locations and a growing number of lawyers and partners.

He said the firm was founded on a vision of building an institution that would outlive its founding partners.

“We are not yet there, but I must say we’ve made a lot of progress from the ground up. We’ve basically grown organically.”

Atekebo said one of the factors behind the firm’s growth had been its deliberate policy of giving young lawyers opportunities to take responsibility based on competence rather than waiting years for advancement.

“If you prove yourself, the first day you walk into Streamsowers & Köhn and you’re the right person to take up a brief, an appellate brief, you will be given the opportunity.”

He described partnership as a relationship that required trust and commitment, noting that SSK had passed through difficult moments but remained united by a shared vision.

“Partnership is like a marriage. Even when you have the intimacy, couples have disagreements, tough moments, but over the years, one way or the other, we’ve worked together because we all believe in that vision.”

The three founding partners including Kemela Okara, Etigwe Uwa, SAN, and Chiagozie Hilary-Nwokonko, also reflected on the firm’s journey.

Okara said trust, integrity and succession planning were central to the firm’s philosophy.
“We wanted something that would be built on trust and integrity.”

Hilary-Nwokonko said the founding partners were united by friendship, brotherhood and a shared vision of the role of lawyers in society.

“What stood out clearly was integrity, and that has stood the test of time.”

For Uwa, the strength of the partnership lay in the partners’ ability to complement one another.
“My greatest area or areas of weakness appear to be the greatest area of strength” of the other partners, he said, adding that the founding partners deliberately set out to build an institution that would outlive them.

Also speaking, investment banker and former NIPC CEO, Yewande Sadiku, said Nigeria had previously undertaken painful but necessary reforms that strengthened its economic foundation.

She recalled that banking consolidation reduced the number of Nigerian banks from 89 to 25 and that the country subsequently paid down its external debt, accumulated reserves and secured an improved international credit rating.

According to her, Nigeria’s current economic reforms could similarly provide the foundation for renewed investment and growth.

“The reforms that Nigeria instituted then were tough. They provided the material foundation for what resulted in Nigeria’s subsequent rating.”

She noted that while SSK started with three partners, it had grown to nine partners and more than 70 lawyers.

The anniversary celebration also featured the presentation of awards to finalists in the SSK Moot Court Competition, which attracted universities from across the six geopolitical zones.

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