Main challenges for global governance in the 21st century
Introduction
Global governance can be defined as political cooperation between the different countries in the world towards the management of common problems affecting more than one country (Barnett, 2004). At times the globe is faced with challenges that affect almost all the nations in the world. Solving these problems requires a holistic approach from the affected countries. The cooperation of these different states towards resolving the issue at hand is what is referred to as global governance.
Global governance became necessary after the Second World War (Barnett, 2004). The objective of the initiation of such an idea was to ensure there was no emergence of another world war. Any matter that would arise would be solved before it grew into a more severe scenario affecting the whole globe. Achieving global governance requires the use of governance institutions. The first institutions were created after the Second World War. The United Nations, the International Criminal Court, and the World Bank, among others, are the leading global governance institutions (Barnett, 2004). The cooperation requires these institutions and one state in the lead.
Global governance institutions have recorded quite a number of successes since their invention after the Second World War. Many of the problems that have raised in the world have met proper management by these institutions with the United States as the lead nation (Barnett, 2004). The cold war is one of the problems that was well managed and did not end up in a third world war. However, the 21st has presented quite a several challenges to global governance.
The number of issues affecting the globe has been on the rise recently. The complexity of these issues is overwhelming the ability of the global governance institutions and national governments to manage. Globalization, by itself, has increased the scope of any problem that would otherwise affect a single nation or a region (Barnett, 2004). These, among other challenges, make global governance a challenging venture altogether.
Systemic risks.
The world has always tried to improve the relations between individual countries. Each country wants to create a relationship with another for mutual benefits. The quest for mutually beneficial relationships has grown from a regional point to a global level. Each country has something it can offer to the other, and at the same time, there is something the same countries seek from others. With the continued economic growth and technological advancement in different states in the world, the 21st century has presented the need for interdependence between nations (Goldin, 2010).
As a way of facilitating global integration, the world has taken a tow towards globalization. This means that countries can relate to each other without any restrictions. In as much as this move is of great benefit to the different states in the world, it has presented itself as a challenge for global governance in the sense that it increases systemic risks.
Systemic risks refer to the likelihood of breakdown of an entire system due to integration (Goldin, 2010). Instead of the collapse of an individual part in the system, the interdependence between them increases the breakdown risk of the entire system in case of the failure or breakdown of a single system. Globalization has increased systemic risks and therefore presented a challenge to global governance (Goldin, 2010). With the increased complexity of the issues facing the globe and now the interdependence growth in the 21st century, the government has been challenged a great deal.
The 2008-2009 financial crisis was an illustration of just how much globalization is affecting global governance (Goldin, 2010). Global institutions failed in their attempts to curb the effects of the crisis leave away, ending it. The crisis was the largest since the great depression of the 20th century. Investors all over the globe lost a lot of money in the disaster. The crisis evidenced the failure of governance institutions to pace up with globalization.
Change in perceptions by some of the emerging nations.
As earlier stated, global governance involves governance institutions and the lead country. Looking back, America was responsible for the end of the Second World War. This puts the country in the position of the lead state in terms of global governance (Biscop, 2016). The country’s economy has been leading for quite a while. This allowed it to harbor the World Bank, which is an institution in global governance.
The 21st century has brought with it new developing countries in terms of economic stability and military power. One of these countries is China. These emerging nations are coming up with new ideas and perspectives on how the globe should be governed. They are continually questioning the existing policies on global governance. China, for example, feels that America has been a lead country for quite a while and think that other developing countries should be allowed to take the lead on global matters (Biscop, 2016). Their main argument is that as a world hegemon, the United States has foregone the democratic principle that governs the globe and with all the power in the world for itself. For this reason, China is slowly withdrawing its involvement from the international community and prefers to deal with its issues from an internal point and not by the consensus encouraged by the global governance institutions (Biscop, 2016).
India has a belief that the existing international organizations are not functioning adequately in the sense that they are controlled by the western countries, which are already developed. The country feels that Asia, as a region, is faced with quite a number of issues that require global attention, but this is not so. Global governance, as per India’s beliefs, is a channel for enacting the interests of the western nations (Biscop, 2016). With this kind of view, there is a likelihood of withdrawal from the global agendas and focusing on internal and regional issues. This poses a great challenge to global governance.
South Africa has raised their concern that instead of global governance promoting the creation of a single global polity, the mode of operation of the concerned players in global governance is promoting regionalization (Biscop, 2016). They are worried that the whole system has more losers than winners.
Global governance institutions are more concerned with solving humanitarian problems facing individual countries. However, their involvement in sorting put problems affecting multiple countries in an overall pint like food water and energy is minimal. This brings different reactions from someone of the emerging nations and eventually affecting global governance.
Climate change.
One of the primary roles of the key players in global governance is to look at issues that pose threats to the international order. One of the main problems that have proven to be quite a challenge for the concerned institutions is global climate change (Ackerly, 2008). Countries are seeking development politically and economically. Development involves industrialization and technological advancements in the involved countries. Attaining growth, in that sense, means that industries will be formed, and the result will be emission and waste that are damaging to the natural environment (Ackerly, 2008).
Climate change in the globe can be attributed to the emission of the greenhouse gases that have been by the developed countries during the industrialization era (Ackerly, 2008). The period was characterized by the worldwide usage of fossil fuels and coal. The need to build has left many countries without the thought of mitigating the effect of their industrialization on the environment. Developing countries are trying to rise to first-class countries and are themselves not considerate of the impact of their developmental quests on the environment.
Climate change is a problem facing the whole globe, and therefore the global governance institutions need to seek ways to ensure that we adapt to the changing climate and mitigate the effect of industrial development on the environment. Doing this is what poses the main challenge to global governance in this 21st century. At the time, around two-thirds of the countries around the globe are still developing. Implementation of policies that mitigate the effects of industrialization on the world means slowing down the development rate of these third world countries (Ackerly, 2008). These countries also lack the ability to drive development through sustainable and eco-friendly means.
An adaptation fund is underway and is aimed at promoting clean development in developing countries. The fund is aimed at initiating sustainable and eco-friendly development in the states and hence mitigating the effects of industrialization on the environment. However, looking at the number of developed countries and comparing them to the percentage of those still developing, the fund which is being donated by the developed countries and some of the international organizations might be of much change to the global climate crisis. The developed countries are themselves trying to maintain their economies through the same ways the developing countries are trying to achieve development. Generally, dealing with climate change is proving to be quite a crisis to the development of the globe (Ackerly, 2008).it is also challenging the ability and prosperity of global governance.
Poverty
One of the major crises in the globe at the moment is poverty. 9% of the people throughout the world live in extreme poverty (Hulme, 2010). Around 80% of the total number of countries around the globe are still developing, meaning that the economies in these countries are still not stable (Hulme, 2010). Poverty in these countries is strikingly very high. Since the Second World War, different countries have been struggling to overcome the effects of the wars and stabilize their economies. The United Nations, a global governance institution together with Bretton woods, have had policies on development aid since their very creation after the Second World War (Hulme, 2010).
The development aid was aimed at promoting development in the countries that had just attained independence since Capital was the main constraining factor in economic growth in most countries around the globe (Hulme, 2010). The development aid was aimed at funding large scale development projects in these countries that would promote fast economic growth. With time, the funding was instead used in the provision of basic requirements in these countries. This, in the long run, had the nations surviving on edge with no significant economic growth. The world economy has been developing on a global scale. However, with the rising living standards, the state of most countries is no different from that of the 20th century.
The 21st century is seen as an era of industrialization with most third world countries struggling to make ends meet in terms of development and economic growth (Hulme, 2010). Global governance is faced with the challenge of ensuring that progress in these countries is noticeable while at the same checking on the effect of the rapid development of the global economy and climatic change. The development aid provided to most of these countries is rather insufficient in cushioning the shocks that are experienced continuously in the world market. States have, over time, become dependent on the aid they get from the developed nations. The number of developed countries being only 20% of the total number of countries in the world cannot provide the required aid in all the poor and developing countries around the globe (Hulme, 2010). At the same time, most of these countries lack their own source of income, and therefore development in them is static. They are less industrialized, with few exports for revenue (Hulme, 2010). The aid they acquire is consequently used to obtain basic needs from the developed countries. Generally, the world is revolving around poverty.
Global governance is faced with the challenge of trying to counter poverty in most countries in these countries. The states have become dependent on the aid provided by international organizations. The western countries being the most developed in the globe, are the leading manufacturers, and their export growth has on the rise since the end of world war two. Countries in Africa, Asia, and Central America are still struggling to reach the standards of the first world countries (Hulme, 2010). The fact that development in these countries is static makes it hard for global governance institutions to curb poverty around the globe.
Violent conflicts
The establishment of the global governance institutions was meant to solve the global crisis, especially those that would lead to the occurrence of the third world war (Johns, 2019). Conflict resolution was one of the main objectives behind the idea of global governance. The world has not experienced any global physical war. However, there have been regional conflicts and multiple civil wars in most countries. The cold war that emerged in the developing countries in the quest for global influence between the global powers is an example of the current types of conflicts that the global governance institutions are expected to deal with (Johns, 2019).
The 21st century is characterized by the quest for globalization. The whole idea is based on the creation of international relationships meant to advantages in terms of product costs, markets, taxes, and political security. Different countries have always dominated specific market segments around the globe. With globalization on the route, different countries are testing different markets, some of which have been dominated by different countries. This has led to increased conflicts around the globe. Globalization has enabled investments in foreign countries by all nations. Developed countries have seized this opportunity and have started exploiting the untouched resources in third world countries. These exploitive intentions have been associated with increased global conflicts (Johns, 2019). China and America have been on edge with each other creating the possibility of a war between the two powers, which would spark the emergence of a third world war looking at the influence these two global economic powers have (Johns, 2019).
Global governance is supposed to be at the forefront of conflict resolution. With the whole world excited at the promising benefits of globalization without looking at the conflicts arising from the same, global governance institutions are presented with the challenge of dealing with these conflicts. Competition between developed countries over market segments and global influence has brought the tension that the world is currently facing. The 21st century has brought with it a lot of civil wars that have jeopardized global. Countries in West Africa, the Middle East, and Central America have recorded the highest numbers of civil wars calling for the intervention of organizations such as the United Nations, a global governance institution (Johns, 2019). The United Nations has been forced to enforce its peacekeeping arm to counter the increasing global conflicts. Liberia, for example, has experienced over 20 years of civil wars that have taken 15 years of intervention from the United Nations to end (Johns, 2019). America’s involvement in the Iraq-Iran conflicts is some of the examples of the increasing conflicts in the 21st century (Johns, 2019).
As countries continue to develop and improve their military powers, there is increased tension in the intentions of these countries. The fact that states are continually developing their weapons shows that the globe is at risk of experiencing a third world. In the event of one, the world would be a ruin. Global governance is faced with the challenge of ensuring that the arising conflicts between nations do not level up to a global crisis that would lead to a third world war, which we all know would the worst in the history of the earth.
References
Barnett, M. and Duvall, R. eds., 2004. Power in global governance (Vol. 98). Cambridge University Press.
Goldin, I. and Vogel, T., 2010. Global governance and systemic risk in the 21st century: Lessons from the financial crisis. Global Policy, 1(1), pp.4-15.
Biscop, S., 2016. The European Union and emerging powers in the 21st century: how Europe can shape a new global order. Routledge.
Ackerly, B.A., and Vandenbergh, M.P., 2008. Climate change justice: The challenge for global governance. Vanderbilt Public Law Research Paper, (08-55), p.553.
Hulme, D., 2010. Global poverty: How global governance is failing the poor (Vol. 44). Routledge.
Johns, L., and Wyer, F., 2019. When Things Fall Apart: The Impact of Global Governance on Civil Conflicts.