Inside the WTO

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Swiss and WTO officials cut the red ribbon to mark the completion of renovations of the WTO headquarters, which cost CHF130 million, paid for by the Swiss government CHF70 million, plus CHF60 million in interest-free loans. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

Diplomatic delegates after a special session of the WTO’s General Council in 201, which was addressed by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres. ©mark Henley

Security and statue of Tiber, a gift of the Italian government (to the International Labour Organisation, the former residents of the building) at the WTO, during a visit by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres in 2019 prior to addressing a special session of the WTO’s General Council. ©mark Henley

Delegates prepare for a closed-door meeting of the WTO's General Council, the institution's highest-level decision-making body in Geneva, in 2014. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

Delegates greet each other prior to a meeting of the WTO's General Council in 2013. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

Roberto Azevedo, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, just before a meeting of the WTO's General Council, the institution's highest-level decision-making body in Geneva, in 2019. ©mark Henley

US delegation shares a joke prior to a closed-door meeting of the WTO General Council in 2019. ©mark Henley

An interpreter prepares for a meeting of the WTO's General Council in 2013. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

Delegates attend a meeting of the WTO's General Council in 2013. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

Staff in the WTO's atrium in Geneva in 2014. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

Delegate on his phone before going to a meeting of the WTO General Council in 2019. ©mark Henley

A shop inside the WTO headquarters sells teddy bears and other gifts and books. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

Diplomats limousines leave the WTO headquarters in Geneva in 2014. © Mark Henley/panos Pictures

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Mark Henley's photographs captures the unique atmosphere inside the Geneva-based World Trade Organization (WTO), where delegates from its 164 member countries gather.

The WTO is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by most of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. Its goal is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible.

All images: Mark Henley/Panos

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