DG Okonjo-Iweala welcomes the 2023 cohort of WTO Young Professionals
Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala welcomed the seventh cohort of participants in the WTO Young Professionals Programme on 30 January 2023. The 17 Young Professionals from developing and least-developed country (LDC) members will spend the rest of the year in the WTO Secretariat to learn about the organization’s work and contribute to its activities.
The 17 participants in the Young Professionals Programme were selected from more than 3,500 candidates after a competitive and merit-based selection process. The seventh cohort come from Barbados, Chinese Taipei, Côte d’Ivoire, Guatemala, Guyana, Jamaica, Kenya, Moldova, Nepal, Nigeria, Panama, Togo, Ukraine, Saint Lucia, Singapore, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Launched in 2016, the WTO Young Professionals Programme is part of the Secretariat’s efforts to increase diversity and broaden the representation of the membership.
“The primary goal of this programme is to build your WTO-related knowledge and skills, which you will then carry with you in your future endeavours, whether in public service or the private sector in your home countries, here at the WTO, or elsewhere,” DG Okonjo-Iweala said. “We are counting on you too: we need your fresh eyes to tell us what you think is working well here – and more importantly, what you think is not!”
Talking on behalf of the group, Kimonique Powell from Jamaica said: “This is a unique opportunity for the 17 of us, all from underrepresented members of the WTO, to expand our knowledge of international trade and WTO-related issues. The programme also speaks to the WTO’s continued commitment to diversity and inclusion which is evident not only in the countries we represent but also in our professional profiles,” she said.
In addition to the participation of the Director-General, the event was attended by Deputy Director-General Angela Ellard, ambassadors and permanent representatives of the participants’ members of origin, and directors of the WTO Secretariat divisions hosting the Young Professionals this year.
Jamaica, Moldova, Nepal, Saint Lucia, South Africa and Zimbabwe are represented in the Young Professionals Programme for the first time.
