Members have several credible candidates to choose from. These include Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Kenya’s Amina Mohamed
off! On July 8th the window for members to nominate the next director-general of the World Trade Organisation closed. Over the next few months members will try to pick between eight candidates, each hoping to rescue the institution from its present sorry state. The process will highlight some of theFans of the multilateral trading system boast about its openness. In line with that principle, the top job at theor the World Bank.
Members have several credible candidates to choose from. Nigeria’s candidate, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, is a political heavyweight: she is a former finance minister and has years of managing operations at the World Bank under her belt. Kenya’s pick, Amina Mohamed, is a trade heavyweight: she chaired theFrom July 15th onwards, candidates will receive a grilling from members. Then the’s consensus-building skills come into play: all 164 members will have to agree on the winner.
At this point, the messy reality of trade negotiations will kick in. Just as the quest for consensus can sap ambition from trade talks, the search for a new director-general could end with members plumping for whoever gives the least offence. Robert Lighthizer, the United States Trade Representative, has already said that “any whiff” of anti-Americanism could lead him to use his veto.’s constituents to talk past each other.
Expect the months ahead to reveal the disconnect between candidates’ ambitions and what the institution can achieve. Ms Okonjo-Iweala has pledged to mediate between America and China. Good luck with that. Egypt’s Abdel-Hamid Mamdouh has promised to “reboot” the’s ability to negotiate new rules. But the director-general can only move as far as the members want—and members do not want to make the concessions needed.
The victor would therefore inherit a difficult job—if, that is, one is eventually chosen. In today’s fraught circumstances, consensus may not be reachable. The bar is low enough that the appointment of any director-general would count as a success.This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline "Leading question"
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