The Federal Government has approved the appointment of Ambassador Chiedu Osakwe as Director General with concurrent designation as Chief Negotiator, Nigerian Office for Trade Negotiations (NOTN)

The appointment, which took effect from June 6, 2017, is for a period of four years.

News Express reports that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the established of NOTN last May, as the standing Negotiating body for Nigeria.

The NOTN is legally domiciled in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

All reports and recommendations from the NOTN on trade policy shall be reviewed by the Economic Management Team based on the memoranda submitted by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, for decision making by FEC as appropriate

Before now, Osakwe was a Trade Adviser at the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and provided technical advice on trade policy and structural reforms to the Federal Government

He is also an Adjunct Professor on a leave of absence from the International University in Geneva (IUG) on International Trade Policy, Diplomacy and Negotiations. Prior to his current position in Nigeria, he headed several Divisions, including most recently the position of Director of the Accessions Division at the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Before joining the WTO, he was a Nigerian Diplomat in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during which he served at the Permanent Missions of Nigeria to the United Nations (UN) and other International Organizations in New York and Geneva. He has published widely in the areas of trade policy and negotiations, foreign policy and national security.

Osakwe was educated at the University of Ibadan (Nigeria), Oxford (United Kingdom) and New York University, from where he obtained his PhD. He has won several prizes and has been honoured by several governments.