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Director-General of the World Trade Organization

Position

Position

FieldValue
postDirector-General
bodythe World Trade Organization
imageNgozi Okonjo-Iweala takes over as new WTO Director-General, 1 March 2021 (50993534756) (cropped).jpg
incumbentNgozi Okonjo-Iweala
incumbentsince1 March 2021
departmentWorld Trade Organization
styleMadam Director-General
(informal)
Her Excellency
(diplomatic)
statusChief Administrative Officer
reports_toGeneral Council
seatCentre William Rappard, Geneva, Switzerland
appointerGeneral Council
termlengthFour years, renewable
constituting_instrumentWTO Organization Chart
formation1 January 1995
firstPeter Sutherland
deputyDeputy Director-Generals
website

(informal) Her Excellency (diplomatic)

The director-general of the World Trade Organization is the officer of the World Trade Organization (WTO) responsible for supervising and directing the organization's administrative operations. Since the World Trade Organization's decisions are made by member states, either through a Ministerial Conference or through the General Council, the director-general has little power over matters of policy – the role is primarily advisory and managerial in nature. The director-general supervises the WTO secretariat of about 700 staff and is appointed by WTO members for a term of four years.

On 1 March 2021, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria took office, becoming both the first woman and the first African to hold this position.

Before the formation of the WTO, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) had a series of directors-general. Peter Sutherland was the last director-general of GATT and the first of the WTO.

List of directors-general

This is a list of former holders of the office of Director-General. The post was created in 1995, although the earlier office of Executive Secretary is often seen as a direct equivalent.

No.PortraitName and datesTermHome countryStartEnd
1[[File:Peter Sutherland (1985).jpgcenter100px]]**Peter Sutherland**
(1946–2018)1 July 199330 April 1995Ireland Ireland
2[[File:Renato Ruggiero.jpgcenter100px]]**Renato Ruggiero**
(1930–2013)1 May 199531 August 1999Italy Italy
3[[File:Mike Moore.jpgcenter100px]]**Mike Moore**
(1949–2020)1 September 199931 August 2002New Zealand New Zealand
4[[File:Supachai Panitchpakdi.jpgcenter100px]]**Supachai Panitchpakdi**
(born 1946)1 September 200231 August 2005Thailand Thailand
5[[File:Pascal Lamy, 2006.jpgcenter100px]]**Pascal Lamy**
(born 1947)1 September 200531 August 2009France France
1 September 200931 August 2013
6[[File:Roberto Azevedo cropped.jpgcenter100px]]**Roberto Azevêdo**
(born 1957)1 September 201331 August 2017Brazil Brazil
1 September 201731 August 2020
7[[File:Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala takes over as new WTO Director-General, 1 March 2021 (50993534756) (cropped).jpgcenterframeless140x140px]]**Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala**
(born 1954)1 March 202131 August 2025{{flagiconNigeria
1 September 2025Incumbent

2020 director-general selection

In May 2020, Director-General Azevedo announced that he would step down on 31 August 2020, a year before his mandate was due to expire. On 17 August 2020, human rights organizations urged the member nations to reject the nomination of Saudi Arabia's Mohammad Al-Tuwaijri, citing the country's poor human rights records.

General Council Chair David Walker initiated a process of consultation with members from 7 September 2020 onwards, through which the field of candidates was gradually reduced until an appointment was to be made. Eight candidates were put forward by WTO member governments to succeed Azevedo.

The final selection required a consensus of the 164 member countries and was expected to take place in November, 2020. However, due to "the health situation and current events" the meeting was postponed.

CountryNameNotesRef.Withdrawn on 5 February 2021 after consultation with major countries such as the United StatesWithdrawn on 6 October 2020 after the second round of consultationsWithdrawn on 18 September 2020 after the first round of consultations
Nigeria NigeriaNgozi Okonjo-IwealaFormer Managing Director of the World Bank, Finance Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs
South Korea South KoreaYoo Myung-heeMinister for Trade of South Korea
Kenya KenyaAmina C. MohamedCabinet Secretary for Sports, Heritage and Culture in Kenya
Saudi Arabia Saudi ArabiaMohammad Al-TuwaijriMinister ranked advisor at the Royal Court, ex-minister of Economy and Planning
United Kingdom United KingdomLiam FoxFormer Secretary of State for International Trade and Secretary of State for Defence in the UK
Mexico MexicoJesús Seade KuriUndersecretary for North America for the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Egypt EgyptAbdel-Hamid MamdouhNegotiator for Egypt and senior WTO official
Moldova MoldovaTudor UlianovschiFormer Foreign Minister of Moldova

References

References

  1. [http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/dg_e/dg_selection_process_e.htm See document WT/L/509, accessible from]
  2. (14 February 2021). "After being blocked by Trump, first African and woman takes WTO helm".
  3. "Previous GATT and WTO Directors-General". WTO.
  4. Emma Farge, Philip Blenkinsop. (2020-08-31). "Damaged WTO now leaderless as chief Azevedo steps down". Reuters.
  5. "WTO General Council reappoints Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as Director-General for a second term".
  6. (14 May 2020). "WTO chief Roberto Azevêdo to step down early". The Financial Times.
  7. (16 August 2020). "World Trade Organization Urged to Reject Saudi Arabia's Nominee for WTO Director General".
  8. "WTO Director-General: Roberto Azevêdo".
  9. "Candidates for DG selection process 2020". WHO.
  10. (12 October 2020). "Moon, allies intensify campaign for Yoo Myung-hee to head WTO". [[Joongang Daily]].
  11. "General Council meeting on DG selection postponed".
  12. (7 November 2020). "APPOINTMENT OF THE NEXT DIRECTOR-GENERAL - COMMUNICATION FROM THE GENERAL COUNCIL CHAIR, H.E. DR DAVID WALKER".
  13. (5 February 2021). "WTO: South Korea's Yoo Myung-hee withdraws from director general race, clearing path for Nigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala". South China Morning Post.
  14. "S. Korea's Trade Minister Declares Bid to Run for WTO Chief".
  15. (8 October 2020). "Nigerian, South Korean make last round of WTO chief race - sources". Reuters.
  16. (18 September 2020). "Dr Liam Fox through to 2nd round in WTO Director General contest". Department for International Trade.
  17. "Mr Abdel-Hamid Mamdouh Biography".
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