Mali’s Permanent Representative Presents Credentials to WTO Director-General

Bamako, January 28, 2026 - Following the presentation of his credentials on January 26, 2026, to the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, His Excellency Mr. Sékou dit Gaoussou Cissé, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Mali to Geneva, continued this diplomatic process on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, by presenting his credentials to Ms. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO). During the meeting that followed the ceremony, Ambassador Cissé conveyed the warm greetings of the highest Malian authorities and reaffirmed his commitment to strengthening relations between Mali and the WTO, notably through active support for efforts to consolidate the multilateral trading system. Advocating for the cotton sector, he drew attention to the massive subsidies granted by developed countries to their cotton industries, which he said distort competition to the detriment of producers in C4+ countries. The Ambassador also highlighted the reforms undertaken by Mali under the Mali 2063 strategic vision, emphasizing progress in the structural transformation of the national economy, the digitization of public services, the fight against corruption, and the modernization of agriculture, aimed at developing industrial value chains. In response, Ms. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala welcomed the dynamic cooperation between the WTO and Mali, as well as within the broader C4+ framework, and reaffirmed the Organization’s commitment to supporting initiatives for cotton development, economic modernization, and trade facilitation.