Between the congratulations and the many articles devoted to her, the Web has only eyes for Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala since her appointment was formalized on February 15, 2021. Indeed, the Nigerian has made history at 66 years by becoming the first woman and the first native of the African continent to accede to the head of the World Trade Organization (WTO). By launching a challenge on Twitter inviting to reproduce the dress style of the new Director General of the WTO under the hashtag #NoiGoesToWTO (Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala goes to the WTO), her famous compatriot Giwa-Tubosun (alias @Temite ), fondatrice de LifeBank who collects blood from banks for delivery to hospitals, contributed to this enthusiasm. It has already given rise to hashtags like #JustLikeNgozi or more recently #BeLikeNgoziChallenge all the rage in Nigeria, reports the Pulse Nigeria news site.
And to dress like the former Minister of Finance of Nigeria is to wear a loincloth, bodice and matching skirt most often cut in a wax print, and sport a headdress made in the same fabric. Like her jewelry, created with African pearls or natural materials that refer to the continent, her headdress has become “the” signature of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala who wears it in most of his public appearances. And this, whatever the textile used (wax, bazin, aso oke …) and chosen from the multitude of fabrics available in Nigeria and West Africa.
SUCH A RISK
An Icon!
A Legend!
A Great NigerianWoman!
A Pace Setter!
The Standard!I Celebrate You Today! #justlikeNgozi #NOIgoestoWTO pic.twitter.com/pO9S00VknF
– Mona (@ cutie6cute) February 15, 2021
(An icon, a legend, a great Nigerian woman (…), the standard. I celebrate you today.)
#BeLikeNgoziChallenge. Beautiful pic.twitter.com/2m31l4zu7t
– PROF LATTE @ (@honilatte) February 15, 2021
From February 12, in a post preparing Internet users to take up his challenge, Temie Giwa-Tubosun came back to this famous headdress (Yellow, which means scarf in Yoruba, as they say in Nigeria and some neighboring countries) noting that it was not easy to reproduce. It is indeed the result of a knack for tying a scarf or a fabric used as such, that many African women own without really thinking about it but which, depending on its execution, defines a style.
This is my entry for #NoiGoesToWTO #BelikeNgoziChallenge
I told you @temite I had a special entry. Please vote for us guys. @NOIweala we are so proud of you. Thank you for giving my daughter and so many African girls someone to look up to. pic.twitter.com/Vr3wN34c78– Tolulope Adeleru-Balogun (@tolulopeab) February 15, 2021
(Here is my entry for the #NoiGoesToWTO #BelikeNgoziChallenge
I told you @temite. I had a special entry. Please vote for us.
@NOIweala we are so proud of you. Thank you for giving my daughter and so many African girls someone to look up to.)
Despite the difficulty, everyone has adopted the Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala style: Nigerians in particular who do not hide their pride, children and even men just as grateful for the model offered to their daughters by the career of the Nigerian. Temie Giwa-Tubosun, who had announced that her challenge was associated with a reward of 100,000 naira (206 euros), mischievously self-proclaimed winner. She now invites Internet users to choose the NGO dedicated to women to whom their donation will go.
Omg! I looove this! #AnkaraArmy #NoiGoesToWTO https://t.co/EuO6baRkKs
– Temie Giwa-Tubosun (@temite) February 14, 2021
(I love that !)
I was so excited to participate in this challenge
Congratulations Ma @NOIweala #BeLikeNgoziChallenge pic.twitter.com/mdtA0fTFqA– Deni✨✨ (@Adenikeola_) February 16, 2021
(I am so happy to participate in this challenge. Congratulations Ms. @NOIweala)
Don’t allow this useless Nigeria government makes you feel like Education is not the best Legacy. Don’t give up on your dreams
#BeLikeNgoziChallenge pic.twitter.com/xl5EMk81Hg– ENDSARS (@Ayodeji_Tobbby) February 15, 2021
(Don’t allow this useless Nigerian government to make you believe that education is not the best legacy. Don’t give up on your dreams.)
Regardless, the movement is on. On Twitter, a user even asked for a tutorial to successfully reproduce the headdress of the future Director General of the WTO who will take office on March 1, 2021. Others use the hashtag for more political messages, highlighting, for example , the importance of enjoying a good education as their model. The “Ngozimania” sets in and highlights a sartorial approach that could be compared to a political gesture given the stereotypes often associated with the African continent. The recent decision of a Maori MP not to wear a tie, which is compulsory in the Chamber in New Zealand, as a form of support for his community is proof of this.
Like the Director General of the WTO, several African women who occupy international positions stick to this sartorial choice. No matter what latitude they find themselves in, these personalities continue to dress as they would in their home countries. This is the case of Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations and President of the United Nations Group for Sustainable Development, or even the Kenyan Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Program on HIV / AIDS (UNAIDS).
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