WTO Secretariat

The Secretariat is headed by Director-General Roberto Azevêdo, who took office for four years on 1 September 2013. WTO members agreed to appoint Mr Azevêdo for a second term, starting in September 2017, following a selection process at the end of 2016. The four Deputy Directors-General began their terms on 1 October 2013. They are Yonov Frederick Agah of Nigeria, Karl Brauner of Germany, David Shark of the United States and Xiaozhun Yi of China. The number of WTO staff fell from 647 to 628 in 2016; a recruitment process is under way to fill the vacancies.