WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION AT A GLANCE

World Trade Organisation World Trade Organisation (WTO) is an international body, which aims at liberalising international trade. It was started at the initiative of the developed countries. i. WTO establishes rules regarding international trade, ii. It sees that the member countries obey these rules and iii. 149 countries of the world are currently members of the WTO (2006). WTO Head Quarters Location: Geneva, Switzerland Established: 1 January 1995 Created by: Uruguay Round negotiations (1986­94) Membership: 151 countries on 27 July 2007 Budget: 182 million Swiss francs for 2007 Secretariat staff: 625 Head: Pascal Lamy (Director­General) Functions Administering WTO trade agreements. Forum for trade negotiations. Handling trade disputes. Monitoring national trade policies. Technical assistance and training for developing countries. Cooperation with other international organizations