IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/revint/v16y2021i1d10.1007_s11558-019-09362-0.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The global governance of international development: Documenting the rise of multi-stakeholder partnerships and identifying underlying theoretical explanations

Author

Listed:
  • Bernhard Reinsberg

    (University of Cambridge
    University of Glasgow)

  • Oliver Westerwinter

    (University of St. Gallen
    European University Institute)

Abstract

The global governance of development increasingly relies on multi-stakeholder partnerships between states, intergovernmental organizations, and non-governmental organizations. This article takes on two tasks. The first is to describe quantitatively the institutional evolution of the multilateral development system over the past century. The second is to juxtapose four rational-institutionalist explanations for why states establish new organizations as transnational governance initiatives—functionalism, power-oriented theories, domestic politics, and contextual design. The empirical analysis probes these explanations using the new Transnational Public-Private Governance Initiatives in World Politics dataset, which combines several existing data sources to build the most comprehensive data on different forms of institutionalized cooperation in global governance. The results lend most support to the contextual design view, while also yielding support for other accounts. By employing Heckman selection models, the analysis addresses potential selection bias due to unobserved correlation between state choices to create a new organization and its design. A qualitative case study further validates measurement choices and causal mechanisms. These findings have implications for theories of institutional design and development practice, specifically regarding the role of intergovernmental organizations in an increasingly interconnected world.

Suggested Citation

  • Bernhard Reinsberg & Oliver Westerwinter, 2021. "The global governance of international development: Documenting the rise of multi-stakeholder partnerships and identifying underlying theoretical explanations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 59-94, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:revint:v:16:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1007_s11558-019-09362-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s11558-019-09362-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11558-019-09362-0
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11558-019-09362-0?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. James J. Heckman, 1976. "The Common Structure of Statistical Models of Truncation, Sample Selection and Limited Dependent Variables and a Simple Estimator for Such Models," NBER Chapters, in: Annals of Economic and Social Measurement, Volume 5, number 4, pages 475-492, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Kaya,Ayse, 2015. "Power and Global Economic Institutions," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107120945.
    3. Lieberman, Evan S., 2005. "Nested Analysis as a Mixed-Method Strategy for Comparative Research," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 99(3), pages 435-452, August.
    4. Kahler, Miles, 1992. "Multilateralism with small and large numbers," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 46(3), pages 681-708, July.
    5. Liesbet Hooghe & Gary Marks, 2015. "Delegation and pooling in international organizations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 10(3), pages 305-328, September.
    6. World Bank, 2015. "World Development Indicators 2015," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 21634, December.
    7. Skyler J. Cranmer & Philip Leifeld & Scott D. McClurg & Meredith Rolfe, 2017. "Navigating the Range of Statistical Tools for Inferential Network Analysis," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 61(1), pages 237-251, January.
    8. Thomas Gehring & Benjamin Faude, 2014. "A theory of emerging order within institutional complexes: How competition among regulatory international institutions leads to institutional adaptation and division of labor," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 9(4), pages 471-498, December.
    9. Moschella, Manuela, 2011. "Lagged Learning and the Response to Equilibrium Shock: The Global Financial Crisis and IMF Surveillance," Journal of Public Policy, Cambridge University Press, vol. 31(2), pages 121-141, August.
    10. Reinsberg, Bernhard & Michaelowa, Katharina & Knack, Stephen, 2017. "Which Donors, Which Funds? Bilateral Donors' Choice of Multilateral Funds at the World Bank," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 71(4), pages 767-802, October.
    11. World Bank, 2016. "World Development Indicators 2016," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 23969, December.
    12. Copelovitch, Mark S. & Putnam, Tonya L., 2014. "Design in Context: Existing International Agreements and New Cooperation," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 68(2), pages 471-493, April.
    13. Sartori, Anne E., 2003. "An Estimator for Some Binary-Outcome Selection Models Without Exclusion Restrictions," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 11(2), pages 111-138, April.
    14. Reisen, Helmut, 2010. "The multilateral donor non-system: towards accountability and efficient role assignment," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 4, pages 1-22.
    15. Johnson, Tana & Urpelainen, Johannes, 2014. "International Bureaucrats and the Formation of Intergovernmental Organizations: Institutional Design Discretion Sweetens the Pot," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 68(1), pages 177-209, January.
    16. Kenneth W. Abbott & Thomas Hale, 2014. "Orchestrating Global Solutions Networks: A Guide for Organizational Entrepreneurs," Innovations: Technology, Governance, Globalization, MIT Press, vol. 9(1-2), pages 195-212, Winter-Sp.
    17. Felicity Vabulas & Duncan Snidal, 2013. "Organization without delegation: Informal intergovernmental organizations (IIGOs) and the spectrum of intergovernmental arrangements," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 193-220, June.
    18. repec:bla:glopol:v:8:y:2017:i::p:85-95 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Anonymous, 2013. "Introduction to the Issue," Journal of Wine Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(3), pages 243-243, December.
    20. Honaker, James & King, Gary & Blackwell, Matthew, 2011. "Amelia II: A Program for Missing Data," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 45(i07).
    21. Raustiala, Kal & Victor, David G., 2004. "The Regime Complex for Plant Genetic Resources," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 58(2), pages 277-309, April.
    22. Putnam, Robert D., 1988. "Diplomacy and domestic politics: the logic of two-level games," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 42(3), pages 427-460, July.
    23. Simmons, Beth A., 2000. "International Law and State Behavior: Commitment and Compliance in International Monetary Affairs," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 94(4), pages 819-835, December.
    24. Vera Z. Eichenauer & Bernhard Reinsberg, 2017. "What determines earmarked funding to international development organizations? Evidence from the new multi-bi aid data," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 12(2), pages 171-197, June.
    25. Frank Biermann & Philipp Pattberg & Harro van Asselt & Fariborz Zelli, 2009. "The Fragmentation of Global Governance Architectures: A Framework for Analysis," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 9(4), pages 14-40, November.
    26. Gilligan, Michael J., 2004. "Is There a Broader-Deeper Trade-off in International Multilateral Agreements?," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 58(3), pages 459-484, July.
    27. Rosendorff, B. Peter & Milner, Helen V., 2001. "The Optimal Design of International Trade Institutions: Uncertainty and Escape," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 55(4), pages 829-857, October.
    28. Liliana B. Andonova, 2010. "Public-Private Partnerships for the Earth: Politics and Patterns of Hybrid Authority in the Multilateral System," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 10(2), pages 25-53, May.
    29. Erin R. Graham, 2017. "The Promise and Pitfalls of Assembled Institutions: Lessons from the Global Environment Facility and UNAIDS," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 8(1), pages 52-61, February.
    30. Manning, Richard, 2014. "The multilateral aid system: An assessment following the major replenishments of 2013," WIDER Working Paper Series 110, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    31. Barbara Koremenos, 2013. "What’s left out and why? Informal provisions in formal international law," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 137-162, June.
    32. Grieco, Joseph M., 1988. "Anarchy and the limits of cooperation: a realist critique of the newest liberal institutionalism," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 42(3), pages 485-507, July.
    33. Miles Kahler, 2016. "Complex governance and the new interdependence approach (NIA)," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(5), pages 825-839, September.
    34. Anonymous, 2013. "Introduction to the Issue," Journal of Wine Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(2), pages 129-130, November.
    35. Busch, Marc L., 2007. "Overlapping Institutions, Forum Shopping, and Dispute Settlement in International Trade," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 61(4), pages 735-761, October.
    36. Thomas Hale & David Held & Kevin Young, 2013. "Gridlock: From Self-reinforcing Interdependence to Second-order Cooperation Problems," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 4(3), pages 223-235, September.
    37. De Búrca, Gráinne & Keohane, Robert O. & Sabel, Charles, 2014. "Global Experimentalist Governance," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 44(03), pages 477-486, July.
    38. Jonas Tallberg & Thomas Sommerer & Theresa Squatrito, 2016. "Democratic memberships in international organizations: Sources of institutional design," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 11(1), pages 59-87, March.
    39. Todd Allee & Manfred Elsig, 2016. "Why do some international institutions contain strong dispute settlement provisions? New evidence from preferential trade agreements," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 11(1), pages 89-120, March.
    40. Richard Manning, 2014. "The Multilateral Aid System: An Assessment Following the Major Replenishments of 2013," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2014-110, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    41. Julia Morse & Robert Keohane, 2014. "Contested multilateralism," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 9(4), pages 385-412, December.
    42. Steinberg, Richard H., 2002. "In the Shadow of Law or Power? Consensus-Based Bargaining and Outcomes in the GATT/WTO," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 56(2), pages 339-374, April.
    43. Henning, C. Randall, 2017. "Tangled Governance: International Regime Complexity, the Troika, and the Euro Crisis," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198801801.
    44. Ilene Grabel, 2011. "Not your grandfather's IMF: global crisis, 'productive incoherence' and developmental policy space," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 35(5), pages 805-830.
    45. Randall Stone, 2013. "Informal governance in international organizations: Introduction to the special issue," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 121-136, June.
    46. Jeff Colgan & Robert Keohane & Thijs Van de Graaf, 2012. "Punctuated equilibrium in the energy regime complex," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 7(2), pages 117-143, June.
    47. Fioretos, Orfeo, 2011. "Historical Institutionalism in International Relations," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 65(2), pages 367-399, April.
    48. Rodrik, Dani, 1995. "Why is there Multilateral Lending?," CEPR Discussion Papers 1207, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    49. Abbott, Kenneth W. & Snidal, Duncan, 2000. "Hard and Soft Law in International Governance," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 54(3), pages 421-456, July.
    50. Klaus H. Goetz & Ronny Patz & Bernhard Reinsberg, 2017. "Trust Funds as a Lever of Influence at International Development Organizations," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 8(s5), pages 85-95, August.
    51. Abbott, Kenneth W. & Green, Jessica F. & Keohane, Robert O., 2016. "Organizational Ecology and Institutional Change in Global Governance," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 70(2), pages 247-277, April.
    52. Steven Bernstein, 2013. "Rio+20: Sustainable Development in a Time of Multilateral Decline," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 13(4), pages 12-21, November.
    53. Lipson, Charles, 1991. "Why are some international agreements informal?," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 45(4), pages 495-538, October.
    54. Katharina Michaelowa & Axel Michaelowa, 2017. "Transnational Climate Governance Initiatives: Designed for Effective Climate Change Mitigation?," International Interactions, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(1), pages 129-155, January.
    55. Koremenos, Barbara & Lipson, Charles & Snidal, Duncan, 2001. "The Rational Design of International Institutions," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 55(4), pages 761-799, October.
    56. Voeten, Erik, 2001. "Outside Options and the Logic of Security Council Action," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 95(4), pages 845-858, December.
    57. Thomas Hale & Charles Roger, 2014. "Orchestration and transnational climate governance," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 9(1), pages 59-82, March.
    58. Hoffmann, Matthew J., 2011. "Climate Governance at the Crossroads: Experimenting with a Global Response after Kyoto," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780195390087.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Bernhard Reinsberg & Oliver Westerwinter, 2023. "Institutional Overlap in Global Governance and the Design of Intergovernmental Organizations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 18(4), pages 693-724, October.
    2. Kelly Gerard, 2023. "Doing aid chains differently: Evaluating the potential of Multi‐Stakeholder Partnerships," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 41(1), January.
    3. Kenneth W. Abbott & Benjamin Faude, 2022. "Hybrid institutional complexes in global governance," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 263-291, April.
    4. Daniel Berliner & Alex Ingrams & Suzanne J. Piotrowski, 2022. "Process effects of multistakeholder institutions: Theory and evidence from the Open Government Partnership," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(4), pages 1343-1361, October.
    5. Andonova, Liliana B. & Piselli, Dario, 2022. "Transnational partnerships, domestic institutions, and sustainable development. The case of Brazil and the Amazon Region Protected Areas program," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    6. Oliver Westerwinter & Kenneth W. Abbott & Thomas Biersteker, 2021. "Informal governance in world politics," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 1-27, January.
    7. Abbott, Kenneth W. & Faude, Benjamin, 2022. "Hybrid institutional complexes in global governance," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 109882, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    8. Mette Eilstrup-Sangiovanni, 2022. "Ordering global governance complexes: The evolution of the governance complex for international civil aviation," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 293-322, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Oliver Westerwinter & Kenneth W. Abbott & Thomas Biersteker, 2021. "Informal governance in world politics," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 1-27, January.
    2. Mette Eilstrup-Sangiovanni & Oliver Westerwinter, 2022. "The global governance complexity cube: Varieties of institutional complexity in global governance," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 233-262, April.
    3. Bernhard Reinsberg & Oliver Westerwinter, 2023. "Institutional Overlap in Global Governance and the Design of Intergovernmental Organizations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 18(4), pages 693-724, October.
    4. Oliver Westerwinter, 2021. "Transnational public-private governance initiatives in world politics: Introducing a new dataset," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 137-174, January.
    5. Kenneth W. Abbott & Benjamin Faude, 2022. "Hybrid institutional complexes in global governance," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 263-291, April.
    6. repec:bla:glopol:v:8:y:2017:i::p:85-95 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Abbott, Kenneth W. & Faude, Benjamin, 2022. "Hybrid institutional complexes in global governance," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 109882, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    8. Klaus H. Goetz & Ronny Patz & Bernhard Reinsberg, 2017. "Trust Funds as a Lever of Influence at International Development Organizations," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 8(s5), pages 85-95, August.
    9. Adela Toscano-Valle & Antonio Sianes & Francisco Santos-Carrillo & Luis A. Fernández-Portillo, 2022. "Can the Rational Design of International Institutions Solve Cooperation Problems? Insights from a Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-22, June.
    10. Charles B. Roger & Sam S. Rowan, 2022. "Analyzing international organizations: How the concepts we use affect the answers we get," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 597-625, July.
    11. Oliver Westerwinter, 2017. "Barbara Koremenos. 2016. The continent of international law. Explaining agreement design. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 12(4), pages 647-651, December.
    12. Bernhard Reinsberg, 2017. "Xu, Jiajun. 2017. Beyond US Hegemony in International Development: The Contest for Influence at the World Bank. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 12(3), pages 491-495, September.
    13. Daniel Verdier, 2022. "Bargaining strategies for governance complex games," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 349-371, April.
    14. Felicity Vabulas & Duncan Snidal, 2013. "Organization without delegation: Informal intergovernmental organizations (IIGOs) and the spectrum of intergovernmental arrangements," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 193-220, June.
    15. C. Randall Henning, 2019. "Regime Complexity and the Institutions of Crisis and Development Finance," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 50(1), pages 24-45, January.
    16. Yoram Z. Haftel & Tobias Lenz, 2022. "Measuring institutional overlap in global governance," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 323-347, April.
    17. Mareike Kleine, 2013. "Knowing your limits: Informal governance and judgment in the EU," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 245-264, June.
    18. Mette Eilstrup-Sangiovanni, 2022. "Ordering global governance complexes: The evolution of the governance complex for international civil aviation," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 293-322, April.
    19. Melissa Carlson & Barbara Koremenos, 2021. "Cooperation Failure or Secret Collusion? Absolute Monarchs and Informal Cooperation," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 95-135, January.
    20. Tobias Lenz & Besir Ceka & Liesbet Hooghe & Gary Marks & Alexandr Burilkov, 2023. "Discovering cooperation: Endogenous change in international organizations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 18(4), pages 631-666, October.
    21. Eugenia C. Heldt & Thomas Dörfler, 2022. "Orchestrating private investors for development: How the World Bank revitalizes," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(4), pages 1382-1398, October.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Global governance; Multilateral development organizations; Aid architecture; Informal governance; Transnational governance; Regime complex; Trust funds;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F30 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - General
    • F55 - International Economics - - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy - - - International Institutional Arrangements
    • H87 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - International Fiscal Issues; International Public Goods
    • O19 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - International Linkages to Development; Role of International Organizations

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:revint:v:16:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1007_s11558-019-09362-0. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.