Abstract
The WTO is looking for a new Director-General (DG). What does the trade community think is needed? This paper reports on the results of an expert survey undertaken as part of a research project on global trade governance at the European University Institute to solicit views on what WTO members and the international trade community consider the most important attributes of candidates for the position, as well as views on the substantive policy and institutional reform priorities confronting the WTO – and thus the new DG. The results suggest strong support for someone with managerial and political experience, and a professional network that spans international organizations, major capitals, and international business. African respondents assign the highest priority to regional diversity. Resolving the dispute settlement crisis is the highest priority for most respondents; launching discussions on new issues obtains the least support. There is broad agreement on the importance of addressing a range of negotiating topics and institutional reforms, but substantial variation in the rankings assigned by different groups of respondents to specific issues.
Highlights
A total of 1,092 people opened the survey; 75% (819) responded to at least one question
What does the trade community think is needed? This paper reports on the results of an expert survey undertaken as part of a research project on global trade governance at the European University Institute to solicit views on what WTO members and the international trade community consider the most important attributes of candidates for the position, as well as views on the substantive policy and institutional reform priorities confronting the WTO – and the new DG
The results suggest strong support for someone with managerial and political experience, and a professional network that spans international organizations, major capitals, and international business
Summary
In June 2020, the WTO began the process of looking for a new Director-General (DG) after the unexpected decision by the incumbent, Roberto Azevedo, to step down before the expiry of his term. Government officials (including the EU) represent the second largest category of respondents (24.6%) after academia (25.1%); followed by the private sector (companies and business associations) (19%); staff of international organizations (18%) and NGOs, labor unions, think tanks (11% of the sample). Less than 1% of the respondents report they are based in the Middle East (6 respondents) or in countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Independent States (5 respondents) This should be considered when comparing responses by geographic region. In what follows we focus on the reported ranking of the issues by groups deemed to be of greatest salience for the selection process: Geneva delegations; government officials not based in Geneva; the private sector and NGOs. In addition, we report results for respondents aggregated by geographic region. Annex 2 reports the total number of respondents for each question
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