Abstract
After the Cold War, global governance emerged as an umbrella to address transnational challenges. But this concept is still somewhat ambiguous, and so is the contemporary world order, where a significant power shift has occurred from the nation-State to the “new actors.” On the other hand, it is now over a year since a global threat emerged, affecting millions of people. The COVID-19 challenge revealed several flaws in the contemporary world order, the United Nations system, and the international organizations’ role. It is therefore imperative that we ask ourselves about the nation-State’s ability to face the COVID-19 challenge on its own, as an introduction to raise the topic of facing the future transnational challenges. In this setting, the objective of this study is to shed the light on the aforementioned flaws, the contemporary challenges, and the way we tackle new threats as human beings. This study was conducted using a qualitative methodological approach based on analysis of secondary data. Following deductive reasoning, it highlights the importance of global governance in facing contemporary challenges in general before addressing the COVID-19 issue in particular. Study findings show that states, international organizations, and unofficial actors need to update the traditional approach to transnational challenges towards global governance. In this context, international conferences are a necessary tool to tackle new challenges related to human security.
References
The Associated Press. (2020, April 15). China didn’t warn public of likely pandemic for 6 key days. AP News. https://apnews.com/68a9e1b91de4ffc166acd6012d82c2f9.Search in Google Scholar
BBC. (2020, May 19). Coronavirus: Trump accuses WHO of being a ‘puppet of China’. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/health-52679329.Search in Google Scholar
Borger, J. (2020, May 3). Mike Pompeo: ‘enormous evidence’ coronavirus came from Chinese lab. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/03/mike-pompeo-donald-trump-coronavirus-chinese-laboratorySearch in Google Scholar
Boseley, S. (2020, June 9). WHO expert backtracks after saying asymptomatic transmission very rare. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/09/who-expert-backtracks-after-saying-asymptomatic-transmission-very-rareSearch in Google Scholar
Bloomberg. (2020, July 22). China Vows Retaliation After U.S. Shutters Houston Consulate. Bloomberg.com. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-07-22/u-s-asked-china-to-close-houston-consulate-top-editor-hu-says.Search in Google Scholar
Brzezinski, Z. (2013). Strategic Vision: America and the Crisis of Global Power. New York, USA: Basic Books.Search in Google Scholar
Dixon, R. (2020, March 27). No lockdown here: Belarus’s strongman rejects coronavirus risks. He suggests saunas and vodka. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/no-lockdown-here-belaruss-strongman-rejects-coronavirus-risks-he-suggests-saunas-and-vodka/2020/03/27/7aab812c-7025-11ea-a156-0048b62cdb51_story.htmlSearch in Google Scholar
Finkelstein, L. S. (1995). What Is Global Governance? Global Governance: A Review of Multilateralism and International Organizations, 1(3), p.367–372.Search in Google Scholar
Fukuyama, F. (2014). Political Order and Political Decay: From the Industrial Revolution to the Globalization of Democracy. London, UK: Profile Books.Search in Google Scholar
Hutt, R. (2016, January 21). What are the 10 biggest global challenges?Search in Google Scholar
World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/what-are-the-10-biggest-global-challenges/Search in Google Scholar
Kelly, L. (2020, April 19). Australia demands coronavirus enquiry, adding to pressure on China. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-australia-idUKKBN221058.Search in Google Scholar
Lourie, R. (2017). Putin: His Downfall and Russia’s Coming Crash. New York, USA: Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press.Search in Google Scholar
McKenzie, D. (2020, December 13). Despite promises of solidarity on Covid-19, rich countries are snapping up the supply of promising vaccines. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/13/world/coronavirus-vaccine-developing-world-intl/index.html.Search in Google Scholar
Nehme, M. (2014). Power Sharing of Global Governance Wears Down the State. Lebanese National Defense, 88. https://www.lebarmy.gov.lb/en/content/power-sharing-global-governance-wear-down-stateSearch in Google Scholar
O’Brien, R. (2020, October 21). How China Threatens American Democracy: Beijing’s Ideological Agenda Has Gone Global. Foreign Affairs. https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/china/2020-10-21/how-china-threatens-american-democracy.Search in Google Scholar
Power, S. (2021). The Can-Do Power: America’s Advantage and Biden’s Chance. Foreign Affairs, 100(1). https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2020-11-20/samantha-power-can-do-power.Search in Google Scholar
Van Der Made, J. (2020, April 20). China furious over German newspaper claims that China caused Covid-19 outbreak. RFI. https://www.rfi.fr/en/international/20200420-china-furious-over-german-newspaper-claims-that-china-caused-covid-19.Search in Google Scholar
Watts, A., & Stracqualursi, V. (2020, April 8). WHO defends coronavirus response after Trump criticism. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/08/politics/who-responds-trump-claims-coronavirus/index.html.Search in Google Scholar
World Health Assembly 54. (2001). Global health security - epidemic alert and response: report by the Secretariat. World Health Organization. https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/78718Search in Google Scholar
World Health Organization. (2020, July 15). More than 150 countries engaged in COVID-19 vaccine global access facility. World Health Organization.Search in Google Scholar
https://www.who.int/news/item/15-07-2020-more-than-150-countries-engaged-in-covid-19-vaccine-global-access-facility.Search in Google Scholar
© 2021 Alain Akl, published by De Gruyter
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.