Director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has warned that African countries must change from reliance on foreign aid and take bolder steps to attract investment, as global donor support continues to wane.
Speaking on the sidelines of ongoing International Monetary Fund (IMF)/ World Bank 2025 Spring Meetings in Washington DC on the shifting U.S. trade policies, Okonjo-Iweala said the continent must prepare for a new era of self-reliance driven by domestic reform, infrastructure development, and trade diversification.
“It is very clear, aid is disappearing. There may be a little left, but it is disappearing.” Stating that what Africa needs now is investment, she said there is more to be done to mobilize domestic resources, remove bureaucratic bottlenecks, and build investor confidence.
“We need investment. And when you need investment, you have to do so much more in terms of mobilizing domestic resources to put infrastructure in place, removing bureaucratic barriers so investment can come in. And this is what we need to do.”
Noting that Africa is only marginally affected by current U.S. tariff changes, due to its limited trade volume with the US she said the broader challenge is Africa’s shrinking relevance in global trade. The continent accounts for just three per cent of global exports, and intra-African trade remains low at around 16 to 20 per cent.
