Roberto Azevêdo
| Roberto Azevêdo | |
|---|---|
Azevêdo in 2013
|
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| Director-General of the World Trade Organization | |
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Assumed office 1 September 2013 |
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| Preceded by | Pascal Lamy |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
3 October 1957 Salvador, Brazil |
| Political party | Independent |
| Spouse(s) | Maria Nazareth Farani Azevêdo |
| Alma mater |
University of Brasília Rio Branco Institute |
Roberto Carvalho de Azevêdo (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʁoˈbɛʁtu kaʁˈvaʎu dʒi azeˈvedu]; born 3 October 1957) is a Brazilian diplomat and the current Director-General of the World Trade Organization. Azevêdo was elected to succeed Pascal Lamy as Director-General of the World Trade Organization in May 2013. He assumed office on 1 September 2013.
Fluent in English, French and Spanish as well as his native Portuguese, Azevêdo graduated in Electrical Engineering from University of Brasília and International Relations at Rio Branco Institute.
His first diplomatic posting was to Washington in 1988. He subsequently served in the Brazilian embassy in Montevideo, Uruguay before being assigned to the Permanent Mission of Brazil in Geneva, Switzerland in 1997.
In 2001 Roberto Carvalho de Azevêdo was named head of the Brazilian Foreign Ministry’s Dispute Settlement Unit where he remained until 2005. During his tenure he acted as chief litigator in many disputes at the WTO and served on WTO dispute settlement panels.
From 2006 to 2008 he was Vice-Minister for Economic and Technical Affairs at the Foreign Ministry in Brasilia. In that capacity he was Brazil's chief trade negotiator for the Doha Round and represented Brazil in MERCOSUR negotiations.
In 2008 he was appointed Brazil’s Ambassador in Geneva to the United Nations’ international organizations and Permanent Representative to the WTO.
Ambassador Azevêdo has been a frequent lecturer on topics related to international economics and has published numerous articles on these issues.
In May 2013 Azevêdo was announced to succeed Pascal Lamy as the WTO's Director General, with a term beginning 1 September 2013. There were nine nominated candidates for the role, Azevêdo being considered the "insider's candidate" preferred by developing economies. His opponent, Mexican Herminio Blanco, was considered to have been the preferred candidate of richer nations. The Brazilian government pre-empted the official announcement of the WTO and stated that Azevêdo had won by a wide margin.
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