Global Governance

• Global Governance = The way in which global affairs that affect the whole world are managed
• As the world becomes more interdependent, global governance is increasingly important for achieving sustainable development across all nations, especially true for the governance of the 'global commons'
• Norms = Shared values, traditions and customs that govern individual and group behaviour in a society, they are the perception of what is acceptable or unacceptable in societies at all scales
• Regulation means enforcing sets of rules that have been agreed by the nations involved
• In response to tackling issues raised by increased integration, international agreements are establised in the form of treaties, directives or protocols. These are formulated, maintained and enforced by intergovernmental agencies or instituations, such as the UN, World Bank, WTO or similar
• International laws or regulations contained within international agreements are based off social norms, this means it is difficult to establish global norms as national and regional outlooks differ so much.
• Norms expressed within international regulations usually are determined by the more developed countries, and are therefore based on free-market, capitalist economic systems and democracy
• Global systems are being reproduced to extend and strengthen their reach, which is in the interests of wealthier countries
• Reproduction of global systems may help them keep stable but arguably reinforces some of the inequalities and injustices that exist within the system
• Regulation and reproduction of global system takes place through:

  • Establishment of international legal agreements
  • Governance undertaken by intergovernmental institutions and agencies
  • Extension and reinforcement of social norms on a global scale
• United Nations

  • Founded in 1945, made up of 193 member states who aim to promote international peace, security and co-operation
  • UN has the greatest political authority at a global level out of all intergovernmental institutions
• UN's principles from the charter include:

  • taking action on issues humanity faces in the twenty-first century e.g. peace, security, climate change, sustainable development etc.
  • fostering co-operation by facilitating dialogue and negotiations between nations - a mechanism for solving problems and finding areas of agreements
• UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

  • Follows the successful achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG)
  • Established in September 2015 and agreed a new Agenda 2030 for global sustainable development, defining 17 SDGs from 2015 to 2030
  • e.g. Water security, no hunger, gender equality
• UN General Assembly

  • Develop good relations and co-operation between nations
  • Settling disputes within international law through the International Court of Justice
• Evaluation of UN General Assembly

  • Works as an independent arbitrator to uphold international agreements
  • Each country has a representative, but UN relies on funding from developed nations, leaving it open to criticism about impartiality
• UN Security Council

  • Maintains world peace and security
  • Five permanent members (China, France, Russia, UK and USA) plus ten temporary members elected every two years
• Evaluation of UN Security Council

  • Has facilitated nuclear disarmament since the Cold War
  • Promotes geopolitical stability e.g. sending neutral peacekeeping troops to intercede and de-escalate in regions with conflict
  • Has a history of not agreeing on resolutions to major conflicts e.g. Syria and Russia annexing Crimea
• World Health Organization (WHO)

  • Manages international public health issues by combating and eradicating spread of global diseases
  • Monitors outbreaks of disease in countries and declares global pandemics
• Evaluation of WHO

  • Achieved eradication of smallpox and near eradication of polio
  • Praised for coordinating global response to 2020 COVID-19 pandemic
  • Equally criticised for lack of leadership and efficacy on COVID-19, as well of Ebola previously
  • Critics have called for improved vaccine stockpiling and responses to epidemics
• UN Development Programme (UNDP)

  • Eradication of poverty and the reduction of inequalities and exclusion
• Evaluation of UNDP

  • Led the efforts to successfully meet most of the MDGs
  • Eight anti-poverty targets were set in September 2000 and the world committed to achieve them by 2015
• UN is often criticised for

  • a lack of agreement and subsequent inaction on many security issues
  • limited power to enforce compliance to regulations by national governments
  • its organisation and funding - in a way that supports the status quo, with more powerful nations setting the agenda for their self-interest
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank were established at the end of the Second World War in 1945 to stabilise the global economy
• International Monetary Fund (IMF)

  • Regulates financial flows and stabilises the global monetary system
  • Offers financial and technical assistance to its members, employing economies who monitor the economic health of member countries
  • Provides 'bail out' loans to countries to resolve problems that could lead to global economic crisis
  • Provides loans to help members tack balance of payment problems
  • Reserve drawn from quota subscriptions of 189 member countries
• World Bank

  • Promotes the reduction of poverty in developing countries by providing assistance for development
  • Provides long-term investment loans for development projects in developing countries through IBRD - International Bank of Reconstruction and Development
  • Provides interest-free loans through International Development Association
  • Encourages and advises start-up enterprises
  • Assistance is long terms and financed, mainly by wealthy nations, through government bonds
• Criticisms of the IMF

  • Funding is paid by members and influence is determined by wealth, developing countries criticise this as they have less influence than wealthy countries
  • As part of conditions of loans, IMF imposes severe cuts on spending by governments in developing countries
  • Rescue loans from IMF only stabilise international trade, borrowing country has to pay the loan back at high interest rates
• Criticisms of the World Bank

  • Conditions attatched often insist on the reproduction of capitalist and free-trade market models in the loanee's economy, which do not always reduce poverty
  • World Bank has been criticised for funding major 'top down' projects, such as large multi-purpose dams to provide hydro-electric power, which don't reduce poverty, they claim to support 'bottom-up' projects
• Bottom Up = When local people are consulted and supported in making decisions to undertake projects or developments that meet one or more of their specific needs
• Top Down = When the decision to undertake projects or developments is made by a central authority such as government with little or no consultation with the local people whom it will affect
• World Trade Organisation (WTO) = Came into existence in 1995, successor to General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which had been established following WW2. Currently has 164 members and covers 98% of world trade
• WTO Responsibilities

  • Undertaking the liberalisation of trade by encouraging the removal of barriers and protectionist policies adopted by some governments and trading blocs
  • Resolving trade disputes between member governments
  • Providng a forum for trade negotiations
  • Administering trade agreements that become the ground rules for international commerce
• Problems with the WTO

  • Disagreements between HDEs (USA, EU) and developing economies (Brazil, China) = HDEs insist that in return for free access, developing economies should open their markets to 'western products'. USA, China and India would not compromise tariff sizes, and USA wouldn't allow them to use 'safeguard clauses'
  • Divisions among LDCs
  • HDEs such as EU and US disagree
  • China transformed into a gobal export powerhouse, remaining to claim developing country status
• Progress of the WTO

  • Bilateral agreement reaches between the EU and Latin American countries to end dispute over banana trade
  • WTO achieved its first multilateral agreement in 20 years with Bali Package = agreement to speed up movement of traded goods and reduction in costs with customs
  • Nairobi Package benefited poorest members = export subsidies abolished for farm exports, preferential treatment for LDCs, safeguarding measures, improved measures for LDC cotton traders
• Doha Development Round

  • Began in 2001 in Qatar and came to an end in Nairobi in 2015.
  • Focused on reforming trade in agricultural produce, especially between advanced and developing economies
  • Aim to help less developed nations out of poverty
  • Talks stalled with meetings in Geneva (2008), Bali (2013) and Nairobi (2015)
  • Some progress achieved, but difficulty of reaching a multi-lateral trade agreement with 164 countries was insurmountable
• Multiscalar power = the ability to influence behaviour and attitudes, through interactions at different scales to encourage or prevent change
• Multiscalar relationships involve different tiers and other groups such as non-governmental organisations and civil society groups
• Bilateral Agreement = An agreement on trade (or aid) negotiated between two countries or two groups of countries
• Multilateral Agreement = An agreement negotiated between more than two countries or groups of countries at the same time
• Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) = Any non-profit, non-commercial organisation with a common interest working independently of government influence. Can be organised on a local, national or international scale
• Civil Society = The 'third sector' of societal decision making, distinct from government and business. Can include a wide array of non-profit organisations including NGOs, pressure groups, community groups, indigenous groups etc.