Next WTO chief - Should geography matter?

I have blogged about the news of the selection of the next WTO chief here. Should "geography" matter in the selection process of the next WTO Director General after Pascal Lamy whose term ends in August 2013? Pascal Lamy himself contended that geography should not be the deciding factor in the selection of his successor. Should the next chief be from an emerging economy (Argentina, Mexico) or from the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China or South Africa) member countries? Should nationality matter at all? Would having a person from the developing world at the top post make the organization more "representational"? Is it not representational yet? Would it make the WTO more "sensitive" to developing countries interests? Is it not so yet? Would the nationality of the chief have a bearing on the interpretation of the trade agreements? Would the chief being from Africa make a difference to the participation and interests of African nations in the WTO?

I am not sure it will have an impact on the dispute settlement mechanism. However, would the strategy of the negotiations change or the role of the WTO secretariat in dealings with the Doha impasse change? Is selection of a person from the developing economies (non-US non-EU) merely a representational, symbolic step or a more substantive step? Reuters covered some of the issues here.

Too many questions. Not sure if there are answers to all of them ...

The WTO's top post

Though the term of the present Director General of the WTO ends only in 2013, news of the race for the next incumbent is steadily gathering steam. I had blogged about a possible candidate here.Confirmation of Tim Groser's bid was reported here.

Reuters had an excellent analysis of the potential candidates for the top post with Ghana, South Africa, Brazil and Mexico being the front runners. Would a "developing country" candidate be the next choice? Is there unity amongst developing countries on this? Is an African or Latin American more likely to make it? Does the nationality of the candidate matter at all with respect to the multilateral body? With crucial negotiations at the Doha round deadlocked, the choice of the next candidate seems to be of crucial relevance. Can the next chief push through with the negotiations or face an increasingly resistant set of member countries?

Article VI of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization lays down the selection of the Director General of the WTO:

"1.       There shall be a Secretariat of the WTO (hereinafter referred to as “the Secretariat”) headed by a Director-General. 

2.       The Ministerial Conference shall appoint the Director-General and adopt regulations setting out the powers, duties, conditions of service and term of office of the Director-General."

The appointment would be based on consensus at the Ministerial Conference, or if no consensus is reached, by the majority of votes. Is there a possibility of a consensus candidate or is a contest likely? The coming months would probably have some answers.