Principles for Strengthening Global Cooperation
Transcript Of Principles for Strengthening Global Cooperation
Principles for Strengthening Global Cooperation
JANUARY 2021
Recovery today and resiliency tomorrow require global, multistakeholder cooperation.
While the benefits of cooperation are evident, the idea of working towards a shared future has faced challenges in recent years. The COVID-19 pandemic infected a divided world – one with pre-existing geopolitical fault lines and with growing distrust of globalization. Mechanisms for multilateral action were under strain at the very moment the unfolding pandemic and economic contraction demanded strengthened partnership.
The effects of the pandemic should serve as a catalyst for changing course – away from competition and towards cooperation. Making progress on immediate priorities, including developing and distributing COVID-19 vaccines and effecting economic and societal recoveries, all while taking more ambitious action on long-standing challenges such as climate change and inequity, requires purposeful, coordinated effort. Greater resilience can only occur if leaders rebuild or reimagine instruments for greater collaboration.
The world has seen the benefit that global coordination can bring. The decline in poverty, the growth in innovation and the swift response to security threats over the past three decades could not have been realized without efforts being aligned.
Still, the path ahead does not mean just replicating the steps that showed promise in the past. For global cooperation to be restored, it needs to be reset.
A framework for cooperation and the attendant mechanisms for advancing economic, environmental, security and technology priorities must be configured for today’s dynamic reality. International institutions need to adapt and stakeholders need to account for new actors and technologies that create novel challenges. Though existing structures and instruments may not be sufficient to respond to the challenges, discarding them would be misguided. Stakeholders should make practical use of current mechanisms, strengthening them as appropriate, while identifying new approaches for progressing in common purpose.
Within the current period of uncertainty, drawing a road map towards greater cooperation presents a risk that a fixed path can quickly become misaligned to the geopolitical landscape. Instead, leaders should commit to a common set of principles that can serve as a compass, pointing to the desired destination despite the turbulent environment and differences in starting points. Articulating areas of agreement is therefore the first step towards ambitious collective action.
The World Economic Forum convened the Global Action Group in 2020 to examine mechanisms for increasing multistakeholder collaboration and to identify a set of shared principles for strengthening global cooperation.
The following set of principles, as agreed to by members of the World Economic Forum’s Global Action Group, are meant to help guide leaders towards greater global cooperation.
Principle 1 Principle 2 Principle 3
Principle 4 Principle 5 Principle 6 Principle 7
Strengthen global cooperation
The COVID-19 pandemic struck a world in which geopolitical confrontation was overtaking cooperation. Current challenges should serve not to harden previous postures, but to offer opportunity for a geopolitical reset. Renewed global cooperation is necessary to advance universal priorities of peace, prosperity, health and sustainability.
Advance peace and security
The COVID-19 pandemic threatens global peace and stability. Fragile communities and conflict zones are the areas likely to be hardest hit by immediate public-health and economic challenges and potential second-order crises. Recovery measures must include steps that advance long-term security and humanitarian objectives in accordance with Sustainable Development Goal 16 by accelerating peace efforts, capital investments, as well as steps that promote good governance, strong institutions and social cohesion.
Re-globalize equitably
The benefits of globalization have not been shared widely enough and the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to exacerbate inequities within and between societies. All people, regardless of race, gender or financial standing, should be able to benefit from globalization. Therefore, while quickly increasing economic activity must be a global imperative, so too must be ensuring that societies are inclusive and systemic racism and discrimination is addressed. A new global social contract – calling for closing digital divides, supporting robust education and life-long skills training, reducing inequity and addressing debt burdens in lower- and middle-income countries – is required.
Promote gender equality
Societies with greater levels of gender equality tend to be more prosperous and sustainable, yet inequalities exist and persist regarding the safety, health, compensation and political representation of women. As part of a recovery, economies and societies must put in place measures to prevent gender-based discrimination and violence, and reduce barriers to women’s financial and professional advancement and enjoyment of their human rights.
Rebuild sustainably
The development of green economies offers an opportunity to increase employment while addressing the critical global risk of climate change. For this reason, the COVID-19 pandemic should not be used as a pretext to forego the inclusion of sustainable development elements in policies. Instead, measures that promote recovery, including extraordinary stimulus funding, should advance carbon-neutral products and practices and be undertaken in a way that is consistent with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Deepen public-private partnerships
Governments have taken decisive fiscal action in response to the economic impact of the pandemic. In the longer term, education, infrastructure, technology and humanitarian priorities will require substantial and sustainable investments. Government and business need to pursue financing mechanisms and partnerships to promote innovation and create enabling environments for investing in and efficiently directing resources towards societal and global priorities.
Increase global resilience
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the need for greater global resilience. Protectionist measures do not promote financial stability or offer long-term safeguards against potential technological, economic and public-health shocks. Rather, increased information sharing is necessary, as are revitalized trade networks and a more rules-based global trade system.
Global Action Group
Convener
Børge Brende President World Economic Forum
Co-chairs
François-Philippe Champagne Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Government of Canada
Sigrid Kaag Acting Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Government of the Netherlands
Tarō Kōno Minister in Charge of Administrative Reform Government of Japan
Tito Mboweni Minister of Finance Government of South Africa
Dina Powell McCormick Global Head, Sustainability and Inclusive Growth; Global Head, Sovereign Business, Goldman Sachs
Kent Walker Senior Vice-President, Global Affairs Google
Members
Mohammed Alardhi Executive Chairman Investcorp
John R. Allen President The Brookings Institution
Niels Annen State Minister for Foreign Affairs Government of Germany
Thomas Bagger Head, Foreign Policy Division Office of Presidential Affairs of Germany
Thomas Buberl Chief Executive Officer AXA
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu Minister of Foreign Affairs Government of Turkey
Mathias Cormann Candidate of the Government of Australia for SecretaryGeneral of the OECD
Ivo Daalder President The Chicago Council on Global Affairs
Jeroen Dijsselbloem Chairman Dutch Safety Board
Jeffrey D. Feltman Senior Fellow | Visiting Fellow UN Foundation | The Brookings Institution
Fu Ying Chairperson Center for International Security and Strategy, Tsinghua University
Orit Gadiesh Chairman Bain & Company
Arancha González Laya Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation Government of Spain
Samer Haj Yehia Chairman of the Board Bank Leumi LeIsrael
Jane Harman Director, President and Chief Executive Officer The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Mohammed Al-Jadaan Minister of Finance, Economy and Planning Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Ann Linde Minister of Foreign Affairs Government of Sweden
Susana Malcorra Dean IE School of Global and Public Affairs, IE University
Luis Alberto Moreno Member of the Board of Trustees World Economic Forum
Vali R. Nasr Professor of International Relations Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University
Patrick Odier Chairman of the Board of Directors Bank Lombard Odier & Co.
Maxim Oreshkin Aide to the President Office of the President of the Russian Federation
Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu Indian Prime Minister’s G20 Sherpa Office of the Prime Minister of India
Ayman Al Safadi Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Government of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Kevin Sneader Global Managing Partner McKinsey & Company
Achim Steiner Administrator United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
JANUARY 2021
Recovery today and resiliency tomorrow require global, multistakeholder cooperation.
While the benefits of cooperation are evident, the idea of working towards a shared future has faced challenges in recent years. The COVID-19 pandemic infected a divided world – one with pre-existing geopolitical fault lines and with growing distrust of globalization. Mechanisms for multilateral action were under strain at the very moment the unfolding pandemic and economic contraction demanded strengthened partnership.
The effects of the pandemic should serve as a catalyst for changing course – away from competition and towards cooperation. Making progress on immediate priorities, including developing and distributing COVID-19 vaccines and effecting economic and societal recoveries, all while taking more ambitious action on long-standing challenges such as climate change and inequity, requires purposeful, coordinated effort. Greater resilience can only occur if leaders rebuild or reimagine instruments for greater collaboration.
The world has seen the benefit that global coordination can bring. The decline in poverty, the growth in innovation and the swift response to security threats over the past three decades could not have been realized without efforts being aligned.
Still, the path ahead does not mean just replicating the steps that showed promise in the past. For global cooperation to be restored, it needs to be reset.
A framework for cooperation and the attendant mechanisms for advancing economic, environmental, security and technology priorities must be configured for today’s dynamic reality. International institutions need to adapt and stakeholders need to account for new actors and technologies that create novel challenges. Though existing structures and instruments may not be sufficient to respond to the challenges, discarding them would be misguided. Stakeholders should make practical use of current mechanisms, strengthening them as appropriate, while identifying new approaches for progressing in common purpose.
Within the current period of uncertainty, drawing a road map towards greater cooperation presents a risk that a fixed path can quickly become misaligned to the geopolitical landscape. Instead, leaders should commit to a common set of principles that can serve as a compass, pointing to the desired destination despite the turbulent environment and differences in starting points. Articulating areas of agreement is therefore the first step towards ambitious collective action.
The World Economic Forum convened the Global Action Group in 2020 to examine mechanisms for increasing multistakeholder collaboration and to identify a set of shared principles for strengthening global cooperation.
The following set of principles, as agreed to by members of the World Economic Forum’s Global Action Group, are meant to help guide leaders towards greater global cooperation.
Principle 1 Principle 2 Principle 3
Principle 4 Principle 5 Principle 6 Principle 7
Strengthen global cooperation
The COVID-19 pandemic struck a world in which geopolitical confrontation was overtaking cooperation. Current challenges should serve not to harden previous postures, but to offer opportunity for a geopolitical reset. Renewed global cooperation is necessary to advance universal priorities of peace, prosperity, health and sustainability.
Advance peace and security
The COVID-19 pandemic threatens global peace and stability. Fragile communities and conflict zones are the areas likely to be hardest hit by immediate public-health and economic challenges and potential second-order crises. Recovery measures must include steps that advance long-term security and humanitarian objectives in accordance with Sustainable Development Goal 16 by accelerating peace efforts, capital investments, as well as steps that promote good governance, strong institutions and social cohesion.
Re-globalize equitably
The benefits of globalization have not been shared widely enough and the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to exacerbate inequities within and between societies. All people, regardless of race, gender or financial standing, should be able to benefit from globalization. Therefore, while quickly increasing economic activity must be a global imperative, so too must be ensuring that societies are inclusive and systemic racism and discrimination is addressed. A new global social contract – calling for closing digital divides, supporting robust education and life-long skills training, reducing inequity and addressing debt burdens in lower- and middle-income countries – is required.
Promote gender equality
Societies with greater levels of gender equality tend to be more prosperous and sustainable, yet inequalities exist and persist regarding the safety, health, compensation and political representation of women. As part of a recovery, economies and societies must put in place measures to prevent gender-based discrimination and violence, and reduce barriers to women’s financial and professional advancement and enjoyment of their human rights.
Rebuild sustainably
The development of green economies offers an opportunity to increase employment while addressing the critical global risk of climate change. For this reason, the COVID-19 pandemic should not be used as a pretext to forego the inclusion of sustainable development elements in policies. Instead, measures that promote recovery, including extraordinary stimulus funding, should advance carbon-neutral products and practices and be undertaken in a way that is consistent with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Deepen public-private partnerships
Governments have taken decisive fiscal action in response to the economic impact of the pandemic. In the longer term, education, infrastructure, technology and humanitarian priorities will require substantial and sustainable investments. Government and business need to pursue financing mechanisms and partnerships to promote innovation and create enabling environments for investing in and efficiently directing resources towards societal and global priorities.
Increase global resilience
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the need for greater global resilience. Protectionist measures do not promote financial stability or offer long-term safeguards against potential technological, economic and public-health shocks. Rather, increased information sharing is necessary, as are revitalized trade networks and a more rules-based global trade system.
Global Action Group
Convener
Børge Brende President World Economic Forum
Co-chairs
François-Philippe Champagne Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Government of Canada
Sigrid Kaag Acting Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Government of the Netherlands
Tarō Kōno Minister in Charge of Administrative Reform Government of Japan
Tito Mboweni Minister of Finance Government of South Africa
Dina Powell McCormick Global Head, Sustainability and Inclusive Growth; Global Head, Sovereign Business, Goldman Sachs
Kent Walker Senior Vice-President, Global Affairs Google
Members
Mohammed Alardhi Executive Chairman Investcorp
John R. Allen President The Brookings Institution
Niels Annen State Minister for Foreign Affairs Government of Germany
Thomas Bagger Head, Foreign Policy Division Office of Presidential Affairs of Germany
Thomas Buberl Chief Executive Officer AXA
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu Minister of Foreign Affairs Government of Turkey
Mathias Cormann Candidate of the Government of Australia for SecretaryGeneral of the OECD
Ivo Daalder President The Chicago Council on Global Affairs
Jeroen Dijsselbloem Chairman Dutch Safety Board
Jeffrey D. Feltman Senior Fellow | Visiting Fellow UN Foundation | The Brookings Institution
Fu Ying Chairperson Center for International Security and Strategy, Tsinghua University
Orit Gadiesh Chairman Bain & Company
Arancha González Laya Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation Government of Spain
Samer Haj Yehia Chairman of the Board Bank Leumi LeIsrael
Jane Harman Director, President and Chief Executive Officer The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Mohammed Al-Jadaan Minister of Finance, Economy and Planning Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Ann Linde Minister of Foreign Affairs Government of Sweden
Susana Malcorra Dean IE School of Global and Public Affairs, IE University
Luis Alberto Moreno Member of the Board of Trustees World Economic Forum
Vali R. Nasr Professor of International Relations Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University
Patrick Odier Chairman of the Board of Directors Bank Lombard Odier & Co.
Maxim Oreshkin Aide to the President Office of the President of the Russian Federation
Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu Indian Prime Minister’s G20 Sherpa Office of the Prime Minister of India
Ayman Al Safadi Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Government of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Kevin Sneader Global Managing Partner McKinsey & Company
Achim Steiner Administrator United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)