Economist from Brazil Roberto Azevedo is going to be a new chief of the World Trade Organization. He will be the first Latin American to become WTO Director General. Azevedo snatched the victory in the final third round, having outflanked Herminio Blanco from Mexico. The Brazilian will take the helm on September 1, when the term of the current chief Pascal Lamy will expire.
Since 2008 Roberto Azevedo has been the permanent Brazilian representative in Geneva to the international organizations, which include the WTO, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTD), and International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The World Trade Organization was founded in 1995 with an aim to extend the rights and freedoms in the international trade and to control the trade and political relations. To date, 158 countries are the WTO members.
