Global Governance & Multilateralism
UN system: SC five permanent members (veto power); UNGA (1 state 1 vote); ECOSOC; Secretariat; ICJ; specialised agencies (WHO, UNESCO, ILO, IAEA). Reform debates: expansion of SC permanent membership (G4: India, Germany, Japan, Brazil; African Union — 2 permanent seats; US opposition); accountability gaps. IMF and World Bank: voting power weighted by financial contribution (US de facto veto — 15% threshold); Washington Consensus — structural adjustment programmes; conditionality critique (Stiglitz 2002 — Globalisation and its Discontents); governance reform (emerging market weight: China, India). WTO: consensus-based; Doha Round collapse; Appellate Body paralysis; plurilateral agreements. G7/G8/G20: informal governance; lack of legitimacy; crisis management (2008 GFC; COVID-19). Rise of alternative multilateralism: BRICS+ (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa; 2024 expansion — Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE); SCO; AIIB; NDB. Regionalism: EU (deepest integration); ASEAN (non-interference norm); African Union; MERCOSUR.