Multilateral Aid 2015 identifies policy areas where action is most needed to enable well-functioning multilaterals in the post-2015 era.

Multilateral Aid 2015 identifies policy areas where action is most needed to enable well-functioning multilaterals in the post-2015 era.

The GCC is a major player in the post-2011 reordering of the Middle East. Despite the rise in prominence of individual Gulf states - especially Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates - and the growth of the GCC as a collective entity, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the actual mechanics of policy-making in the region. This book analyses the vital role that institutions are coming to play in shaping policy in the Gulf Arab states. The research coincides with two key developments that have given institutions new importance in the policy process: the emergence of a new generation of leaders in the Gulf, and the era of low oil prices. Both developments, along with dramatic demographic change, have compelled state and citizens to re-evaluate the nature of the social contract that binds them together. Contributors assess the changing relationship between state and citizen and evaluate the role that formal and informal institutions play in mediating such change and informing policy.The book shows how academic, social and economic institutions are responding to the increasingly complex process of decision-making, where citizens demand better services and further empowerment, and states are obliged to seek wider counsel, although wanting to retain ultimate authority. With contributions from both academics and practitioners, this book will be highly relevant for researchers and policymakers alike.

This book examines a particular type of donor behavior – known as country earmarking of contributions – which occurs within the voluntary financing system of the United Nations. The research demonstrates that already during the period of the Millennium Development Goals a large share of the voluntary multilateral funding decisions was influenced by the commercial priorities of the OECD/DAC donor countries. The theoretical contribution focuses on disentangling the mix of policy advantages that can be pursued through linking of donors’ commercial priorities with multi-bilateral development programs. The book considers its empirical findings within the current framework of the Sustainable Development Goals and the associated aid financing architecture. It demonstrates that, despite many negative associations of commercial aid giving, it is difficult to make an indisputably negative judgment on the practice of commercial earmarking in the specific context of the specialized UN agencies. The author argues that whether commercial earmarking proves to be a curse or a blessing for the multilateral development institutions will very much depend on the availability of parallel, flexible funding, and the creation of adequate political and operational space for supranational norm-keepers. Synthesizing the existing knowledge concerning the supply-side of multi-bi aid, this book provides an accessible, entry-level overview of the topic that will appeal to students and scholars of global governance and international organizations.

This report contributes to the broader international debate on why we need multilateralism and how to make it more effective to achieve the 2030 Agenda. At a time when the value of multilateralism is being questioned, the report provides new evidence and recommendations for a new “pact” on ...

Virtually every important question of public policy today involves an international organization. From trade to intellectual property to health policy and beyond, governments interact with international organizations in almost everything they do. Increasingly, individual citizens are directly affected by the work of international organizations. Aimed at academics, students, practitioners, and lawyers, this book gives a comprehensive overview of the world of international organizations today. It emphasizes both the practical aspects of their organization and operation, and the conceptual issues that arise at the junctures between nation-states and international authority, and between law and politics. While the focus is on inter-governmental organizations, the book also encompasses non-governmental organizations and public policy networks. With essays by the leading scholars and practitioners, the book first considers the main international organizations and the kinds of problems they address. This includes chapters on the organizations that relate to trade, humanitarian aid, peace operations, and more, as well as chapters on the history of international organizations. The book then looks at the constituent parts and internal functioning of international organizations. This addresses the internal management of the organization, and includes chapters on the distribution of decision-making power within the organizations, the structure of their assemblies, the role of Secretaries-General and other heads, budgets and finance, and other elements of complex bureaucracies at the international level. This book is essential reading for scholars, practitioners, and students alike.

Corruption is linked to a wide range of developmental issues, including undermining democratic institutions, slowing economic development and contributing to government instability, poverty and inequality. It is estimated that corruption costs more than 5 per cent of global GDP, and that more than one trillion US dollars are paid in bribes each year. This book unpacks the concept of corruption, its political and ethical influences, its measurement, commitments to combat corruption and ways that this is being attempted. Building on the research on the nature, causes and consequences of corruption, this book analyses international anti-corruption interventions in particular. It discusses approaches to focus efforts to tackle corruption in developing countries on where they are most likely to be successful. The efforts of the UK are considered as a detailed case study, with comparisons brought in as necessary from other countries’ and multilateral institutions’ anti-corruption efforts. Bridging a range of disciplines, Anti-Corruption in International Development will be of interest to students and scholars of international development, public administration, management, international relations, politics and criminal justice.