Multilateral governance and assistance

Abstract

Given the considerable reluctance of sovereign states to yield voluntarily even part of their autonomy to higher authority, it should not come as a surprise that the literature on multilateral governance remains quite spotty. The theory of regional and international regimes; how the regimes in place were broadly conceived and introduced; on how the regimes with their institutions have evolved, say, after World War II; and the role of hegemons and pseudo hegemons in the decision making are fairly well developed. This is particularly the case in the context of the more advanced regional integration schemes, such as the EC’s, or the international economic regimes in place. But beyond a rationalization of their original constitutional makeup and a descriptive discourse on their broad operational evolution, there is little in the literature that deals with multilateral governance. In other words, how to practice what is being preached in theoretical models, each of which is clearer than the truth, to borrow Dean Acheson’s memorable phrase, is something that few scholars or diplomats have ventured to tackle systematically in a framework that is relevant today.