Fact check: WTO DG did not ‘bait’ investors to Nigeria

A statement credited to the director general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been deemed fabricated.

Okonjo-Iweala, a former Nigerian finance minister, said the statement circulated with her name was ‘manufactured’.

The WTO chief was alleged to have claimed to have sold a ‘bait’ to foreign investors to subscribe to the economic policies of Nigeria President Bola Tinubu.

“I am bringing investors to Nigeria, using the president’s commendable policies as a bait. Is that too difficult to understand,” a part of the statement attributed to Okonjo-Iweala read.

Ostensibly relating the supposed action to the economic situation in the West African country, the statement claimed that “president Tinubu’s reforms may be harsh, but they would birth a new and prosperous nation.”

The statement also claimed that “six multinational manufacturing giants are coming with me here (Nigeria) to see how their firms could have factories here”.

The quote was shared multiple times on social media and has been forwarded many times on WhatsApp.

However, The Guardian’s checks have verified that the statement was not authored by Okonjo-Iweala who served as Nigeria’s finance minister during the tenure of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Further checks revealed that the viral statement was first credited to the WTO chief via a post on X in August 2023 – three months after Tinubu was sworn in as Nigeria’s president. The post is archived here and here.

Eight months after the statement was first posted, it is being redistributed on social media and messaging platforms. It went farther this time that it got the attention of Okonjo-Iweala who denied authoring it.

Referring to the statement in a post on X, she said it was “another FAKE message” being “manufactured and is being forwarded on WhatsApp in my name.” Her post is archived here.

“I want to make clear that this fake message is not from me. I am pleased that those who know me instantly recognized this as fake,” Okojo-Iweala said.

The WTO chief, who warned those behind the statement, said the “manufactured message” was “a bad example of the use of social media”.