JOB/TNC/85  
 
15 May 2020  
(20-3626) Page: 1/4 
    
 
VIRTUAL INFORMAL HEADS OF DELEGATION MEETING  
 
THURSDAY, 14 MAY 202 0 
Statement by the Director -General  
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1.1.  Thank you for joining this meeting on short notice, ahead of tomorrow 's special virtual General 
Council.  
1.2.  This session is about one very specific administrative arrangement. I have an announcement 
to make. This August, I will complete 7 years as WTO Director -General. And I have decided that  
I will step down from my current position on 31 August 2020, cutting short my second term in of fice 
by exactly one year.  
1.3.  Many of you will have seen the news reports about my decision. It was not my intention for 
you to hear it from the press before you heard it from me – but unfortunately it has worked out that 
way. 
1.4.  This is a decision that I do not take lightly. Between the lockdown and my recent knee surgery, 
I have had more time than usual for reflection. And I reached this decision only after long discussions 
with my family – my wife here in Geneva, and my daughters and my mother in Brasilia. It i s a 
personal decision - a family decision – and I am convinced that this decision serves the best interests 
of this Organization.  
1.5.  I also want to be clear about what this is not: it is not health -related (thank goodness). Nor 
am I pursuing any political op portunities. I hope the future holds new challenges in store, but as of 
right now, I do not know what they will be.  
1.6.  Regardless of how fulfilling these last 7 years have been for me, I must now end this cycle.  
As Members start to shape the WTO's agenda for  the new post -COVID realities, they should do so 
with a new Director -General.  
1.7.  It is not easy for me to say this. The multilateral trading system has been at the centre of my 
career since I was first posted here in 1997. Since then, I have been working in t he system, with 
the system, and for the system. A big chunk of my life, 23 years, has been dedicated to the system, 
and I have been grateful for this opportunity.  My tenure as WTO Director -General has been the 
most demanding, exciting and gratifying perio d in my professional life. I have learned a great deal. 
And I believe that I have been able to contribute to maintaining the WTO as a key pillar of global 
economic governance amid challenging times for multilateral cooperation.  
1.8.  Together, we learned to be c reative, innovative and pragmatic. We delivered the Trade 
Facilitation Agreement, the expansion of the Information Technology Agreement, and decisions on 
food security. We eliminated agricultural export subsidies, and enabled more goods and services 
export s from least -developed countries. Groups of like -minded Members have found ways to 
advance discussions on critical issues while protecting the right of other Members to opt in or out.  JOB/TNC/85  
 
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  1.9.  And behind all this work, I want to pay special tribute to the staff of the WTO Secretariat.  
Working with such a professional and dedicated group of people has been one of the real highlights 
of my time here.  
1.10.  Yet while we have achieved a great deal, much more remains to be done.  We have set 
ourselves ambitious and transforma tive goals for MC12 and for WTO reform. And now we must 
ensure that trade contributes to the global economic recovery from the COVID -19 pandemic.  
1.11.  But I will not be the leader with whom you will chart and walk the strategic path ahead.  
1.12.  The challenges facing  the work of this Organization will always be formidable - commensurate 
with its relevance and role as an anchor of predictability and certainty in a fast -changing global 
economy.  
1.13.  In addition to ongoing work and negotiations, we must also consider what we  need to advance 
the wider discussions around WTO reform. This ongoing process of pragmatic change is something 
we have discussed often over the years.  
1.14.  We know that the WTO cannot stand frozen while the world around it changes profoundly. 
Ensuring that th e WTO continues to be able to respond to Members ' needs and priorities is an 
imperative, not an option. The "new normal " that emerges from the COVID -19 pandemic will have 
to be reflected in our work here.  
1.15.  True and meaningful reform is a long -term task. We have had some success in starting to do 
things differently, but it will take time and commitment from Members to keep building paths 
forward. While I am convinced we have set out in the right direction, the road ahead will entail 
consequential choices and deep reflection.  
1.16.  MC12 will be a critical landmark for this exercise.  
1.17.  As I see it, MC12 should be a stepping -stone to the future of the WTO. It should tie together 
our various ongoing efforts in a coherent approach, and lay the foundations for subsequent reform. 
This means that MC12 will require careful preparation and execution from you, the Members.  
1.18.  My departure in August will give you the time you need to work with my successor – whoever 
she or he may be – to shape the strategic direction for MC12 and the months and years that follow.  
1.19.  As things stand today, our next Ministerial Conference will take place either in the middle of 
2021 or at the end of that year. We have an offer from Kazakhstan to host a June meeting, and 
there is a real possibility t hat this scenario will prevail.  
1.20.  In our normal calendar, the selection process for the next WTO DG would start this December, 
with the nomination of candidates. The selection process would then dominate the first trimester of 
2021 – and maybe longer. I do  not have to remind you how intense that process is.  
1.21.  This timing would clearly impair preparatory work for MC12, irrespective of whether it is held 
in the northern summer or at the end of the year.  
1.22.  In either case, the selection process would be a distraction  from – or worse, a disruption to – 
our desired outcomes. Instead of focusing all efforts on the search for compromise – on finding 
flexibility and making concessions – we would be spending valuable time on a politically charged 
process that has proved div isive in the past.  
1.23.  For a mid -year ministerial, the selection process would overlap with the most intensive phase 
of pre -ministerial preparations, making it highly prone to compromise the planning and execution of 
MC12.  
1.24.  Even if MC12 is held at the end of 20 21, staying on through the end of my term would leave 
my successor mere weeks to prepare. I faced this situation when I first took office and I can tell 
you, first-hand, that this is far from ideal. It might work if we are having a tightly focused Minister ial 
centred on a small number of issues, such as trade facilitation and public stockholding in 2013. But JOB/TNC/85  
 
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  given the far -reaching implications of the choices you will make at MC12, and the wide range of 
issues likely to be before you there, I believe you and  your stakeholders deserve more ambition.  
1.25.  We must decouple these two processes: the DG succession process and the preparation of 
MC12. Doing both would inevitably compromise MC12 and the reform impetus. I care too much for 
this Organization to allow this t o happen.  
1.26.  These considerations on timing were on my mind as I considered my decision to step down. 
And my conclusion is that the sooner I allow you to proceed with the selection process, the better 
off we will be.  
1.27.  As we have seen, I think we must give my successor sufficient time to plan, together with 
you, the path not only for MC12, but for how that Conference fits into your plans for the future of 
the Organization. This is not a minor task by any standard. This requires careful deliberation – and 
suffic ient time to advance such discussions. The earlier the new D irector -General  takes office the 
better.  
1.28.  Second, the pandemic has significantly slowed down many of our activities. Physical meetings 
remain suspended. Many of you have also advised against trying  to advance negotiations for the 
time being. Even if conditions in Geneva improve, it is quite likely that many Capitals and 
Governments would be under duress in the months to come.  
1.29.  This offers us a window to launch the selection process with less impact than usual on our 
work. Members should seize this moment to start deliberating on how to effect the change in 
leadership at the WTO.  
1.30.  Again, my decision was reached after long and hard reflection, and much discussion with my 
family.  
1.31.  For the reasons I have  outlined, I believe that it would be best if Members promptly move 
ahead with the process for selecting the next Director -General.  
1.32.  The procedures for the D irector -General  selection process adopted by Members in 2002 state 
that in the event of a vacancy, " the Chair of the General Council shall initiate, as soon as possible, 
a process for appointment of a new Director -General ." I am and will continue to be in close contact 
with the Chairman of the General Council and with all of you to facilitate this proces s however you 
deem necessary.  
1.33.  I urge you not to treat the process of selecting the next D irector -General  as business as usual. 
This Organization must start 2021 with a focus on the real challenges: ensuring that the multilateral 
trading system responds to  new economic realities, above all the post -COVID recovery. It cannot 
afford to be distracted by a protracted search for a new D irector -General . 
1.34.  I will be with you, working to improve and strengthen this Organization until my last day in 
office - and beyon d, for wherever I am, like my predecessors, I will always be advocating for this 
system, for the WTO.  
1.35.  The WTO may not be perfect, but it is indispensable all the same. It is what keeps us from a 
world where the law of the jungle prevails, at least as far as trade is concerned.  
1.36.  I am proud of our work and it has been a true privilege working with each and every one of 
you: both those who are here today and your predecessors as well.  
1.37.  It is not my intention to have a proper discussion today.  I just wanted to  share this 
information with you.  And let me be clear that tomorrow 's General Council is also not at all about 
this.  We will be having a very important discussion about the COVID -related issues identified by the 
Chair, and you should use every second of your allotted five minutes for this purpose.  
1.38.  As I have said, I will still be with you for the next few months. It is time to roll up our sleeves 
and set out to find a leader worthy of you, our stakeholders and the multilateral trading system.  JOB/TNC/85  
 
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  1.39.  I will now op en the floor in case anyone wishes to say something. As I have said, I do  not 
expect a proper discussion today – we will have plenty of time for this. The General Council Chair 
will be reaching out to you very soon to consult on the way forward. So if you do ask for the floor, 
please be very brief.  
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