Global Governance Initiative a remedy for global disorder

A world order shaped for decades by globalization and strategic competition has quickly become a world shaped by geopolitical and economic risks. Accumulating shocks, such as the trade tensions arising from the United States' tariff measures against both allies and adversaries, and the US-Israeli military actions against Iran and their destabilizing consequences, have significantly increased geopolitical tensions and hence strained the structures and relationships that underpin global order.

These geopolitical risks have seriously impacted the global economic outlook, affecting economic growth, financial markets and supply chains, and causing inflation.

Furthermore, issues such as debt, energy and climate change continue to be politically polarizing issues. In short, disorder defines the current geopolitical landscape, and such disorder needs a wise and responsible new order to remedy the prevailing systemic flaws.

Today's global instability is attributable to five main factors — the erosion of multilateralism, the Global South's underrepresentation, the institutional deficits of the world political order, including the United Nations system, the unfair economic order, and the unilateral approach of the US and its allies. These have produced development, security, governance and trust deficits.

The Global Governance Initiative directly addresses these deficits and promotes the building of a more just, equitable and responsible global governance system. It calls on countries to work together to build a community with a shared future for humanity.

The GGI acts as both a systematic response and a structural alternative to the current international disorder. It addresses the current geopolitical and institutional crises by prioritizing the UN-based system, promoting reform of the biased global governance frameworks and advocating the institutional inclusion of the Global South.

To reform and improve global governance does not mean overturning the existing international order or creating another framework outside of the current international system, but rather the goal is to go back to the roots of the UN and to make the existing international system better at taking actions that serve the interests of all nations on the same footing.

The core concepts of the GGI stem from the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

These core concepts are defined in five main pillars: commitment to the sovereign equality of all nations, application of the international rule of law, respect for multilateralism in its true spirit, a people-centered approach to benefit all people and a commitment to achieving real results.

In order to promote and expand the understanding of the GGI, the Group of Friends of Global Governance has been established, which is a UN-based coalition officially established to promote the GGI, mainly among countries of the Global South, for a more equitable global governance system.

In the current era of great power rivalry and institutional paralysis, key nations of the Global South, such as Pakistan, Indonesia, Egypt, Turkiye, Mexico, Brazil and some African nations, in coordination with China, can play a crucial role in upholding the primacy of sovereignty, promoting pragmatic peaceful solutions to crises and conflicts, and building ad hoc coalitions to act as global facilitators.

The current US-Israeli military actions against Iran are a good example of the possible role of Global South nations in building "ad hoc coalitions" to facilitate reaching pragmatic peaceful solutions based on the principles of the GGI.

China itself is actively implementing the GGI by championing a UN-based international system, promoting true multilateralism and driving reform of international bodies to reduce the global governance deficit.

China regards the UN as the main channel and core institution for global governance. It is advancing the GGI through multilateral mechanisms such as BRICS, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation framework and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

It is also working to increase the voice and representation of the Global South in political and financial systems through important initiatives such as the China-UN Global South-South Development Facility, the New Development Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and creating win-win partnerships via the Belt and Road Initiative.

In short, in a world defined by disorder, China's GGI stands out as a tool for building confidence, strengthening capability and harnessing the collective action of all nations.

The author is a former assistant foreign minister of Egypt, former ambassador of Egypt to China and a board member of Egypt-China Friendship Association.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

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