Supachai Panitchpakdi

Supachai Panitchpakdi's career is distinguished by the sheer scale of the institutions he has led. Serving as Director-General of the WTO and then Secretary-General of UNCTAD for eight years places him in a very small group of people who have held the top job at two major international economic organizations. His leadership at UNCTAD was particularly notable for its focus on developing countries, and he oversaw the production of the flagship Trade and Development Report. He has been a consistent voice for a rules-based international order at a time when that order has come under strain.