In February 2021, Ngozi Okonjo Iweala was appointed as the first woman Director General of World Trade Organisation. She belongs to which of the following countries ?

The correct answer is A. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is a Nigerian economist and former Finance Minister of Nigeria, who also served as a Managing Director at the World Bank. She was selected by WTO members in February 2021 and took office on 1 March 2021 as the first woman and first African to head the organisation. Her term was renewed in 2024 for a second term beginning in September 2025.

The other options are wrong because:

• South Africa (B): Not her country of origin. Her Igbo name is a clue to her Nigerian roots.
• Kenya (C): Not her nationality. Kenya has no link to this appointment.
• Ethiopia (D): This is a common confusion, since Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, an Ethiopian, heads the WHO, not the WTO.

The WTO Director-General is chosen through consensus-based negotiation among members, and the post matters for multilateral trade rules, the Doha Round and disputes over public stockholding for food security, which is a recurring Mains theme for India.

Trap: Mixing up heads of international organisations and their nationalities, especially African ones.