The upcoming transition of the WTO Director General
has been getting a lot of press recently.
Pascal Lamy’s successor could potentially have a tough go of it -- taking over in the wake of a less-than-successful
Doha Round. See here and here. The folks over at IELPB chime in here.
There are 9 candidates in the running,
from Ghana, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Kenya, Jordan, Indonesia, the Republic of
Korea, Brazil and Mexico.
Stuff on Mexico’s candidate (here), Indonesia’s candidate (here), Kenya’s
candidate (here), and New Zealand’s candidate (here).
You have a preferred candidate? Any idea of who the favorite might be?
ReplyDeleteIts still a little early, so I'm not ready to venture a real guess. The candidates have a few months yet (January-March) to get their positions out there and to build support etc.
ReplyDeleteI'd say someone from a developing country this time around. But, first of all, that doesn't do a whole lot of narrowing of the field... Plus, although there's been some speculation that someone from Lat Am or Africa would be a good fit, they'd have to avoid dividing the vote (Costa Rica/Brazil & Kenya/Ghana).
Also, a lot depends on representation in other institutions (e.g., UNCTAD). It might be that a region getting representation there is less likely to head the WTO. Sort of like the WB/IMF leadership situation.
Oh yeah, and I didnt say "(Costa Rica/Brazil/Mexico)" because Angel Gurría (from Mexico) heads the OECD. That might cut against a Mexican candidate's chances. But at this point, who knows.
ReplyDelete