New Candidate

Opinion

July 26th, 12:51pm

Ali al-Mazyad

Ali al-Mazyad - Economic affairs writer.

Third world countries often refrain from submitting candidates to international organization for several reasons, including their inability to secure enough votes for their election due to weak alliances. The success of a candidate, therefore, needs an alliance with countries to guarantee that they would vote in favor of a candidate. This demands massive efforts to persuade countries to vote for the candidate. Another factor is the element of fear whereby some countries are concerned about taking strong decisions against countries with which they share a special relationship. Their candidate may not stand against these decisions, which may anger friendly nations. These countries consequently take the easiest way out, which is to not become embroiled in such affairs in the first place. Saudi Arabia chose to nominate Mohammad al-Tuwaijri for the position of World Trade Organization General Director. Some viewed this move as significant for third world or Arab countries. The truth is, his election will turn him into a representative of all members of the WTO, meaning he will stand at an equal distance from all members to ensure the success of the organization, which has been suffering from noticeable decline in recent years. Saudi Arabia’s current presidency of the G20 will favor al-Tuwaijri. Saudi Arabia is also the world’s top oil producer and it is trying to stand at an equal distance from all parties, which is why its humanitarian aid has reached most countries of the world. Al-Tuwaijri boasts practical experience that will help him lead the WTO should he be elected. He has graduated with a background in banking and has worked at several banks. He also served as minister of economy and planning. This will definitely help him lead the organization. The truth is, securing the nomination requires a lot of hard work, but the sudden resignation of the WTO chief a year before the end of his tenure does not give candidates time, but that does not prevent them from trying. It is not important for al-Tuwaijri to succeed or not, but it is important for us to nominate candidates to international organizations whenever the occasion arises. We must occupy seats in these organizations, regardless if they were political or economic. Al-Tuwaijri’s program for leading the organization, should he be elected, includes several important points. Most significant of which is his belief that focus should be turned to successes, not disputes. He is looking forward to leading the WTO and carrying out reform with the approval of all members. He also believes there is a need to closely study the situation at the organization to uncover the roots of the challenges and devise several scenarios for solutions, while relying on a governance mechanism and following up on performance through clear indices. Efforts must be exerted on restoring trust in the organization and this is what the Saudi candidate will seek. Among the main challenges facing the organization is the lack of effective leadership and management. Saudi Arabia’s candidate, therefore believes in the importance of continuous and intense work with all members over all current and future affairs. He will seek to take advantage of the upcoming ministerial conference and adopting a more dynamic and effective negotiations approach to overcome all challenges the organizations is dealing with. Al-Tuwaijri’s agenda is so extensive that there isn’t enough space for it in this article.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2412611/ali-al-mazyad/new-candidate