Former Ambassador John Danilovich elected ICC Secretary General

ICC’s World Council voted unanimously to approve Mr Danilovich’s appointment today in Geneva, following a recommendation by the ICC Executive Board.

A selection committee appointed by the Board reviewed the qualifications of more than 300 candidates before selecting Mr Danilovich based on his impressive credentials in the international arena and extensive experience of trade related issues.

“John will be an outstanding Secretary General,” said ICC Chairman Harold (Terry) McGraw III, who is Chairman of McGraw Hill Financial. “His experience and deep understanding of global markets as a business leader will be incredibly important to ensure public-private sector engagement in driving economic growth, creating jobs and raising standards of living around the world. We are pleased he will be taking the lead of the world’s business organization.”

Mr Danilovich has been active in the international maritime industry for several decades, holding executive board positions in a number of companies. He served as the US Ambassador to Brazil and to Costa Rica, and from 2005-2009 was the chief executive officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, an innovative and successful foreign aid programme. His current positions include Board Member of the International Advisory Council for the Harvard School of Public Health; Senior Advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (Washington, DC); Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations (New York); Member of the North American Advisory Council of Chatham House (United Kingdom); and Member of the Board of Directors at d’Amico International Shipping.

“John is experienced with working in a multilingual and multicultural environment and possesses a keen understanding of ICC’s unique value as a provider of business standards, policies, dispute resolution services, and practical training and tools for business,” stated Mr McGraw. “He has both the personal qualities and the professional experience needed to take the organization to another level in its ability to mobilize business and influence policy decisions on the world economy.”

As US Ambassador to Costa Rica, Mr Danilovich played a significant role in driving the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). He is skilled at building international partnerships and has established advocacy relationships with policymakers, foreign dignitaries and leaders in major international forums.

Mr Danilovich, who has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Stanford University and a Master of Arts degree in International Relations from the University of Southern California (London), said he will be honoured to take up the challenges when he takes the reins as ICC Secretary General on 30 June 2014. A long-term London resident, Mr Danilovich and his English-born wife, Irene Danilovich, will be moving to Paris.

“I greatly look forward to working with ICC professionals, leadership and national committees around the world to strengthen the organization’s role and visibility,” he said. “This is an exciting organization at a crucial moment in its development. I want to build on the success achieved over the last few years under the leadership of former Secretary General Jean-Guy Carrier, who set ICC on a solid foundation and a steady course.”

Six new members of the ICC Executive Board were also elected during the gathering of ICC’s supreme authority. They were Maria Fernanda Garza, Chair and CEO of Orestia and Chair of ICC Mexico; Dennis M. Nally, Chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers International; Yongmaan (YM) Park, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Doosan Group; Kasemsit Pathomsak, President and Chief Executive of Merchant Partners Securities and Chair of ICC Thailand; Latifur Rahman, Chairman of Transcom Group and Vice-Chair of ICC Bangladesh; and Thomas Wellauer, Chief Operating Officer of Swiss Re and Chair of ICC Switzerland. The World Council also appointed Kap-You (Kevin) Kim, Partner Bae, Kim & Lee as a Vice-President of the International Court of Arbitration as well as 13 new Court members.

The ICC World Council meeting took place as part of three days of meetings of ICC governing bodies in Geneva. On Wednesday, the ICC Executive Board voted in Jan Kleinheisterkamp, Associate Professor of Law at the London School of Economics and Sven Dumoulin, General Counsel Executive Committee Member, Akzo Nobel NV as new members of the Governing Body for Dispute Resolution and announced that Karien Van Gennip, General Manager, Private Banking and Investments at ING, would take over as Chair of the ICC Finance Committee.

World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Roberto Azevedo addressed members of the Executive Board, providing an update on WTO activities including efforts to implement a trade facilitation agreement deal achieved in Bali last year. The week’s activities conclude Friday with an ICC executive meeting with WTO ambassadors.