Global Civil Society Is the Source for New Accountability in Global Governance - Coursework Example

The Role of Civil Society and NGO Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Date Introduction The weakening of traditional governance structures suffices to be one of the impacts of globalisation (Gemmill & Bamidele-Izu, 2002). The decrease in the power of national governments traces its root from the upsurge in the global economic integration. Globalisation has created global civil societies that guarantee world stage access to political and economic actors. Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are a good example of global civil societies that has exhibited increasing influence in global affairs ever since the 1990s. Rather than being stakeholders in the already established governance procedures of a state or country, civil societies contribute significantly towards international cooperation. The success of the influence of civil societies on international cooperation emanates from the fact that they are able to garner substantial public support to justify their arguments. The essay argues that the global civil society is the source for new accountability in global governance. The Global Civil Society It is evident that there exists a global civil society that emanated from globalisation. The GCS refers to the sum of institutions, policies and laws that create as well as mediate inter-border relationships between countries, markets, non-governmental and inter-governmental organisations, citizens and cultures (Mishra, 2012). The primary objective of the global civil society is to democratise or civilise the globalised world. The result is identifying the process through which individuals, movements and groups can demand global empowerment, global justice and global rule of law. The GCS feeds on globalisation. By feeding on globalisation, GCS is able to react on the resulting consequences of globalisation. The evidence behind the dependence and reactive attributes of the GCS to globalisation is the fact that there is a strong positive correlation between GCS clusters and globalisation clusters. In essence, GCS encompasses the individuals, values, networks and ideas that are mainly situated outside the state, market and family complexes (Gray et al., 2006). The individuals, values, ideas and networks also extend beyond the boundaries of a state, its economies and polities. Individuals that participate in the GCS and its values must have a partial location in the international arena. As a result, local societies, states and nations do not bind such participants. This enables them to have an independent voice that does not depend on the voice of the local societies, states and governments. Therefore, participants in the GCS are able to voice their reactions to emerging globalisation issues in sovereign states for the best interest of the public (Ghaus-Pasha, 2005). Rather than creating a participatory and democratic public sphere, the GSC also impacts positively on self-organisation and citizenship of individuals, movements or states. The GCS also suffices to be the epicentre of domestic and international socio-political activities. The advent of capitalist social relations that enable social movements in the contemporary world to pursue and accomplish their goals accounts for the consideration of the GCS as a centre of socio-political activities. The main participants of the global civil society include the transnational advocacy groups and the international non-governmental organisations (INGOs). The contribution of GCS towards global governance is evident when the transnational advocacy groups and INGOs hold campaigns aimed at solving global issues. Transnational solidarity suffices to be the motivation behind such campaigns (Teegen et al., 2004). As a result, the GCS plays a pivotal role towards addressing global problems particularly in situations whereby activists in the states have been unable to resolve. The major areas of focus include environmental issues, health issues and human rights aspects. In essence, in order for the GCS to campaign against an issue, the issue should be transnational in nature in most cases. Focusing on transnational issues enables the society to address problems that have a global influence. A good example of campaigns held by the society is the campaign against climate change. It is apparent that INGOs and other civic societies have campaigned on issues such as the ozone layer depletion as well as the loss of biodiversity since such issues have a global rather than territorial impact. Capitalism that has led to economic interdependence as well as the urge to deal with assaults on democracy and public life has contributed greatly to the emergence of the global civil society. It is worth noting that the global civil society should hold governments to account for their actions particularly those that have a transnational impact. Having capitalised on globalisation, capitalism and the emergence of economic interdependence as well as the need to address global issues, it is apparent that outcries from the affected individuals and the need to protect and conserve the environment among other transnational issues necessitate the campaigns by civil societies (Ulleberg, 2009). It is necessary for the GCS to take part in the campaigns aimed at addressing such concerns since it suffices to be the only global body that can address such challenges. Moreover, there are several fundamental roles played by the GCS. One of the important roles played by the GCS that necessitate its accountability in dealing with global issues is the fact that it creates a level playing ground for marginalised individuals (Gemmill & Bamidele-Izu, 2002). As a result, the GCS can relay the voice of such individuals in global debates thereby enabling the recommendation and implementation of proper measures to resolve the underlying issue. Even though most GCS organisations portray bias towards the northern agenda, the inclusion of the southern agenda is also imperative. Rather than having societies that address the agenda of specific geographical areas, the establishment of global civil societies that represent global issues is pivotal to the successful resolving of global problems. It is also apparent that the accountability of the GCS also emanates from the fact that the society supports free media and information access. The role is most significant in global regions that censor the media and information access. In such areas, it is apparent that the global civil society activism presents limited opportunities (Chandhoke et al., 2002). However, it is the role of the GCS to push beyond the existing limits and boundaries to ensure the creation of imaginative ways that create public space. The case of the Live 8 concert and the Global Call to Action against Poverty are perfect examples of the use of the media to put pressure on governments. This also sufficed to be a proper way of mobilising public opinion. Rather than putting pressure on local governments, the GCS organisations should also ascertain that they are transparent and accountable (Wild, 2006). There have been a number of cases whereby progressive GCS organisations have failed to meet the transparency and accountability measures. The role of the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership-International comprises of civil society organisations that ascertain the delivering of accountable and transparent humanitarian action in accordance with the set guidelines and rules. The GCS also establishes relationships with global institutions aimed at contributing towards global policymaking on pertinent issues such as development, human rights and the environment (Banks & Hulme, 2012). The Civil Society and the Accountability of other Actors It is evident that the role of the GCS also includes holding governments, states, and private companies to account for their actions. This role encompasses the fight against corruption. In the quest to attain the objective and influence global governance, the GCS denounces bribery, creates awareness of all political and economic actors and monitors public services (OECD, 2013). Civil society organisations understand that most cases of corruption entail private companies and public officials; the general public holds the civil society accountable for its interests. The unique positioning of the GCS enables it to expose and denounce cases of corruption. This also entails putting significant pressure for reforms such as eliminating corrupt officials and ensuring the proper utilisation of public funds. Article 13 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) reiterates the role played by the civil society in the fight against corruption. In reference to the Article, the global civil society should require governments to improve on public access to information and transparency. The Article also requires the GCS to promote the contribution of the public to the decision-making process of the government (OECD, 2013). The implementation of the authority of the civil society plays a significant role in enabling governments to include the public in its decision-making process thereby averting cases where the government makes decisions that infringe on human rights or other critical global aspects such as the environment. The UNODC has also enhanced the capacity of the civil society with particular regards to developing states. UNODC trains civil society organisations (CSOs) about UNCAC and the review mechanism used by the organisation. Moreover, it facilitates the engagement of CSOs in intergovernmental meetings besides availing the tools that are necessary for the organisations to work constructively with governments. A good example is the capacity building programme implemented by UNODC in Arab Spring countries. The programme intended to ensure that CSOs have the necessary capacity to handle their responsibilities and function cordially and constructively with the government (OECD, 2013). On May 12, 2012, 40 representatives from nine Tunisian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and 25 registered NGOs from Egypt attended a workshop arranged by UNODC for four days. The workshop also included the Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC) department of the Egyptian Government, Transparency International and the Social Contract Centre of Egypt. The workshop targeted to build the capacity of CSOs in relation to the UNCAC. Tunisia and Egypt are signatories to the UNCAC. The organisation encourages its signatories to include the civil society in combating corruption. The other objective of the workshop was to improve the relationship between the Egyptian Government and civil society organisations. Through a fostered relationship between governments and CSOs, the latter will have powers to provide recommendations and suggestions to the former in fighting corruption as well as enabling the government to comply with UNCAC rules and regulations (OECD, 2013). From the example above, it is evident that holding governments, MNCs and other actors accountable is one of the primary roles of the global civil society. The Impact of Global Civil Society on Global Governance The GCS serves as a governing structure as evidenced by the actions of INGOs such as Greenpeace, Amnesty International and Oxfam International. The INGOs form open forums for debate and dialogue, disseminate information and advocate for increased transparency, accountability and democracy in multilateral and governmental institutions (Mishra, 2012). As a result, the role played by the GCS is evident whenever the public intends to have a greater say in governance. INGOs have also exhibited increased willingness to take part in government institutions as evidenced by their rapid growth over the last decade. The impact of the GCS on global governance emanates from the fact that the GCS has created transnational activism that influences significantly the actions of governments. The incorporation of non-state actors and NGOs in the governance process has pluralised global governance. The impact has been promoting the voice of grass root organisations and making sure that they have a voice in policy-making. The GCS has also given rise to multilateral economic institutions that extend beyond their inter-state mandates to engage civil society actors in different countries. The role played by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is a good example of the scenario. The ITU provides assistance in governing and setting standards of issues associated with telecommunications in different countries. There is a close association between international treaties, international organisations and international regimes. As a result, it is evident that the GCS impacts on global governance (Mishra, 2012). Conclusion The global civil society (GCS) traces its roots from globalisation and capitalism that led to the emergence of international economies. The general public hold the GCS to account for its actions as well as the actions of other governments. The existence of the GCS is necessary since it plays a pivotal role in resolving critical issues associated majorly with human rights, development and the environment. The civil society can hold governments and MNCs accountable for their actions. For instance, UNAC builds the capacity of the civil society to fight corruption in sovereign states. Holding governments, institutions and corporations accountable for their actions suffices to be one of the primary roles of the GCS. The GCS has had an impact on global governance since it has yielded multilateral economic institutions that capacitate civil society actors in independent governance structures. References Banks, N., & Hulme, D. (2012). The role of NGOs and civil society in development and poverty reduction. Brooks World Poverty Institute Working Paper, (171). Chandhoke, N., Glasius, M., Kaldor, M., & Anheier, H. (2002). The limits of global civil society (pp. 35-54). na. Gemmill, B., & Bamidele-Izu, A. (2002). The role of NGOs and civil society in global environmental governance. Global environmental governance: Options and opportunities, 77-100. Ghaus-Pasha, A. (2005, May). Role of civil society organizations in governance. In 6th global forum on reinventing government towards participatory and transparent governance (pp. 24-27). Gray, R., Bebbington, J., & Collison, D. (2006). NGOs, civil society and accountability: making the people accountable to capital. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 19(3), 319-348. Mishra, V. K. (2012). Role of Global Civil Society in Global Governance, The. Beijing L. Rev., 3, 206. OECD. (2012). Civil Society Empowerment. Retrieved from: https://www.oecd.org/cleangovbiz/CivilSocietyEmpowermentDraft.pdf Teegen, H., Doh, J. P., & Vachani, S. (2004). The importance of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in global governance and value creation: An international business research agenda. Journal of International Business Studies, 35(6), 463-483. 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