Former Moroccan minister officially in WTO leadership race

Morocco officially presented on Friday Hassan Abouyoub, Ambassador in Charge of Commercial Negotiations, as candidate to the post of Director General of the Geneva-based World Trade Organization (WTO).

Abouyoub, 46, is a former Minister of external trade, agriculture, tourism and external investments.

He was actively involved in the negotiations for Morocco's adhesion to the Gatt (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) and in the preparations for the implementation of the Moroccan Structural adjustment program.

Abouyoub is the fourth candidate to succeed Renato Ruggiero, who will leave the post next year. The three other candidates are former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Mike Moore, former Canadian International trade Minister Roy MacLaren, and Thailand's Vice-Prime Minister, Supachai Panitchpakdi.

Ruggiero, whose term will come to an end next April, had announced that he will not run for the post. He is the first WTO Director General, which substituted the Gatt in 1995.

The list of candidates will be closed on October 12 and the new WTO chief will be elected by the end of the year.