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.See document WT/L/509, accessible from
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 countryStartEnd1Peter Sutherland(1946–2018)1 July 199330 April 1995 Ireland2Renato Ruggiero(1930–2013)1 May 199531 August 1999 Italy3Mike Moore(1949–2020)1 September 199931 August 2002 New Zealand4Supachai Panitchpakdi(born 1946)1 September 200231 August 2005 Thailand5Pascal Lamy(born 1947)1 September 200531 August 2009 France1 September 200931 August 20136Roberto Azevêdo(born 1957)1 September 201331 August 2017 Brazil1 September 201731 August 20207Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala(born 1954)1 March 202131 August 2025 Nigeria1 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.
+List of candidatesCountryNameNotesRef. NigeriaNgozi Okonjo-IwealaFormer Managing Director of the World Bank, Finance Minister and Minister of Foreign AffairsWithdrawn on 5 February 2021 after consultation with major countries such as the United States South KoreaYoo Myung-heeMinister for Trade of South KoreaWithdrawn on 6 October 2020 after the second round of consultations KenyaAmina C. MohamedCabinet Secretary for Sports, Heritage and Culture in Kenya Saudi ArabiaMohammad Al-TuwaijriMinister ranked advisor at the Royal Court, ex-minister of Economy and Planning United KingdomLiam FoxFormer Secretary of State for International Trade and Secretary of State for Defence in the UKWithdrawn on 18 September 2020 after the first round of consultations MexicoJesús Seade KuriUndersecretary for North America for the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs EgyptAbdel-Hamid MamdouhNegotiator for Egypt and senior WTO official MoldovaTudor UlianovschiFormer Foreign Minister of Moldova
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