Global
Governance is the "collection of governance-related activists, rules and mechanisms,
formal and informal, existing at a variety of levels in the world today".
Global Governance is a broad, dynamic and complex process of interactive decision
making at a global level that involves formal and informal mechanisms as well
as governmental and non governmental bodies. States and governments remain the
primary institution for articulating public interests and those of the global
community as a whole, but global governance also involves intergovernmental and
sometimes, supranational bodies. Global policy is made by a system of
horizontal and vertical interactions in which officials in different branches
of government work with counterparts in other countries as well as with
activists, scientists, bankers and others outside government. The term
"global governance" is sometimes used more narrowly to refer to the
institutions through which these interactions take place.
It is important not to confuse Global governance with these three other concepts:
- International anarchy refers to the absence of a supranational authority capable of regulating the behaviour of states.
- Global hegemony refers to is a powerful state that possesses a pre-eminent military, economic and ideological recourses so it is able to impose its will within a region or worldwide.
- World government refers to the idea of all of human kind united under one political authority.
So is Global Governance now a reality?
Liberal theorists argue that there
is an unmistakeable and perhaps irresistible trend to favour global governance.
The growth of international organizations provides both evidence of a greater
willingness amongst states to cooperate and engage in collective
action, and fosters further cooperation by strengthening trust amongst states,
accustoming them to rule governed behaviour. In the sense that global
governance is closely linked to globalization, its noticeably may fluctuate but
it is likely to grow over time with a tendency towards interdependence and
interconnectedness, if this is established it will be difficult to reverse. This
is demonstrated by developments ranging from international migration, global
terrorism and transnational criminal organisations and global pandemics.
However the extent to which the world as a whole has become orderly and norm governed
should not be exaggerated.
