World Trade Organization

The World Trade Organization is the global intergovernmental body that regulates and facilitates international trade. Founded in 1995 as the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT, 1947), it is the principal forum for negotiating trade agreements and the only international body with binding dispute-settlement authority over its members' trade policies.

At a glance

• Founded: 1995 (Marrakesh Agreement signed 15 April 1994; WTO began operations 1 January 1995)
• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
• Official languages: English, French, Spanish
• Website: www.wto.org

Mission

The WTO's core function is to provide a forum for trade negotiations, administer trade agreements, settle disputes, monitor national trade policies, and provide capacity-building for developing countries. Decisions are made by consensus among the entire membership and ratified by national parliaments.

Structure

The Ministerial Conference, composed of trade ministers from every member, is the supreme decision-making body and meets at least every two years. The General Council, made up of permanent representatives in Geneva, handles day-to-day matters and also sits as the Dispute Settlement Body and the Trade Policy Review Body. The Secretariat in Geneva, led by the Director-General, handles administration and technical support.

Member states

The WTO has 164 members, covering most of the world's sovereign states plus separate customs territories such as Hong Kong, Macau, and Chinese Taipei. Together members account for over 98 percent of global trade.

Key facts

• WTO members include not only sovereign states but also separate customs territories — a legacy of GATT membership rules that allowed Hong Kong and Chinese Taipei to participate without sovereignty disputes.
• The Doha Development Round, launched in 2001 to address developing-country concerns, has effectively stalled — most observers consider it dead, though no formal closure has been declared.
• The WTO's Appellate Body — the highest-tier appellate court for trade disputes — has been paralysed since December 2019 because the United States has blocked appointment of new judges.
• China joined in 2001 after fifteen years of negotiations; Russia joined in 2012 after eighteen.
• Algeria, Belarus, Bhutan, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Sudan, and Syria are among the larger states that remain outside the WTO; most have observer status with active accession proceedings.

Historic milestones