.jpeg) |
| Image via Facebook |
Nigeria's former minister of finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has been named Africa's most powerful woman by Forbes as she continues to rise in the ranks of the world's 100 most powerful women. Okonjo-Iweala, now World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General, has moved up four places from position 91 in 2022 to 87 in this year's Forbes "World's 100 Most Powerful Women" rankings. She made it to the list for the seventh time in 2023 since her debut in 2011.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a Nigerian-American economist, served as the seventh director general of the World Trade Organization (WTO) from 2021. She was the first woman and African to head the WTO. Okonjo-Iweala received an A.B. degree in economics from Harvard University, a Master's in City Planning from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in regional economics and development from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She served two tenures at the World Bank, first as a development economist and vice president and corporate secretary of the World Bank Group (1982–2003) and later as managing director of operations (2007–11). In her latter role, she managed an $81 billion operational portfolio in Africa, South Asia, Europe, and Central Asia.
Okonjo-Iweala also led several World Bank projects to assist poor countries during the global financial crisis of 2007–08 and the world food-price crisis of 2008–09. She introduced reforms to reduce corruption and increase transparency in public finances as Nigeria's finance minister in 2003–06 and again in 2011–15. In 2012, she unsuccessfully ran for the presidency of the World Bank. In 2020, Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari nominated Okonjo-Iweala for the WTO director-general position, but U.S. President Donald Trump's administration blocked her candidacy. In February 2021, U.S. President Joe Biden announced his support for Okonjo-Iweala.
New entrant Mpumi Madisa, CEO of Bidvest Group, is now the second most powerful woman in Africa. Over the last three years, Bidvest has delivered annual growth in headline earnings per share above 20% and created over 6,000 jobs in 2023. The company has built up a US$1.49 billion war chest as it looks for growth opportunities in South Africa and other markets where the company operates.
Madisa, ranked 88th in the global Forbes 2023 list, became the only black female Chief Executive of a top-40 company on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange when she took the helm of the listed company in 2020. In November 2023, she was named the 2023 Sunday Times Business Leader of the Year. Tanzania's President Samia Suluhu Hassan and Nigerian Media mogul Mo Abudu also improved their rankings, signifying a spirited growth in influence amongst political and business leaders on the continent.
Tanzania's President, Samia Hassan, is marking her third consecutive appearance on the Forbes rankings, coming in at number 93 from 95. Hassan is the first female president of Tanzania and has taken over in March 2021 following the death of President John Pombe Magufuli. Her achievements include a strategic focus on infrastructure development, building regional ties, and contributions to various global discourses.
Tanzania recently received global recognition in critical sectors such as tourism and logistics, contributing to the growth of its economy. In October, Tanzania's tourism sector was ranked the second-fastest in Africa and among the top 15 in the world by the UNWTO. In May, Tanzania's port of Dar es Salaam surpassed Kenya's Mombasa port in the World Bank rankings.
In early 2023, the IMF predicted that Tanzania would become the largest economy in East Africa, surpassing that of Kenya. Tanzania's economy is forecasted to grow to US$136 billion by 2028, while Kenya's is forecast to reach US$151 billion in the same period. Tanzania may surpass Kenya's growth rate for the next decade.
Nigerian media mogul Mo Abudu made the list for the third time and moved a rank higher from position 99 to position 98. He announced the start of production of her latest collaborative Netflix venture, "Black, Brilliant, and Bold," which celebrates the incredible achievements of Black women.
