Intergovernmental organization

Types and purpose

Intergovernmental organizations differ in function, membership and membership criteria. They have various goals and scopes, often outlined in the treaty or charter. Some IGOs developed to fulfill a need for a neutral forum for debate or negotiation to resolve disputes. Others developed to carry out mutual interests with unified aims to preserve peace through conflict resolution and better international relations, promote international cooperation on matters such as environmental protection, to promote human rights, to promote social development (education, health care), to render humanitarian aid, and to economic development. Some are more general in scope (the United Nations) while others may have subject-specific missions (such as Interpol or the International Organization for Standardization and other standards organizations). Common types include:

United Nations

Mission

1. To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace;
2. To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace;
3. To achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion; and
4. To be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations in the attainment of these common ends.

Membership

193 Member States. Membership is "...open to all other peace-loving states which accept the obligations contained in the present Charter and, in the judgment of the Organization, are able and willing to carry out these obligations."

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

Mission

"The Parties to this Treaty reaffirm their faith in the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and their desire to live in peace with all peoples and all governments. They are determined to safeguard the freedom, common heritage and civilisation of their peoples, founded on the principles of democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law. They seek to promote stability and well-being in the North Atlantic area. They are resolved to unite their efforts for collective defence and for the preservation of peace and security. They therefore agree to this North Atlantic Treaty."

Membership

"NATO is an Alliance that consists of 28 independent member countries."

World Bank

Mission

Islamic Development Bank

Mission The Islamic Development Bank is an international financial institution established in pursuance of the Declaration of Intent issued by the Conference of Finance Ministers of Muslim Countries held in Jeddah in Dhul Q'adah 1393H, corresponding to December 1973. The Inaugural Meeting of the Board of Governors took place in Rajab 1395H, corresponding to July 1975, and the Bank was formally opened on 15 Shawwal 1395H corresponding to 20 October 1975.

Membership

188 member countries made up of government-owned organizations.

INBAR

INBAR evolved from an informal network of bamboo and rattan researchers set up in 1984 by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada. In 1993 the network was formalized under its present name, but remained a project of IDRC. Work to launch INBAR as an independent organization started in 1995, and was completed in 1997 when INBAR became an independent organization with its headquarters in Beijing, China – the first intergovernmental organization to be headquartered in the People's Republic. Membership and structure

Membership

42 member countries make up this organisation.

History

While treaties, alliances, and multilateral conferences had existed for centuries, IGOs only began to be established in the 19th century. Among the first were the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine, initiated in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, and the future International Telegraph Union, which was founded by the signing of the International Telegraph Convention by 20 countries in May 1865. Of notable significance was the emergence of the League of Nations following World War One, designed as an institution to foster collective security in order to sustain peace.

Expansion and growth

Held and McGrew (2002) counted thousands of IGOs worldwide, and this number continues to rise. This increase may be attributed to globalization, which increases and encourages the cooperation among and within states. Globalization has also provided easier means for IGO growth, as a result of increased international relations. This is seen economically, politically, militarily, as well as on the domestic level. Economically, IGOs gain material and non-material resources for economic prosperity. IGOs also provide more political stability within the state and among differing states. Military alliances are also formed by establishing common standards in order to ensure security of the members to ward off outside threats. Lastly, the formation has encouraged autocratic states to develop into democracies in order to form an effective and internal government.

Participation and involvement

There are several different reasons a state may choose membership in an intergovernmental organization. But there are also reasons membership may be rejected. These reasons are explored in the sections below.

Reasons for participation:

1. Economic rewards: In the case of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), many different countries receive economic benefits from membership in the free trade agreement. For example, Mexican companies are given better access to U.S. markets due to their membership.
2. Political influence: Smaller countries, such as Portugal and the Netherlands, who do not carry much political clout on the international stage, are given a substantial increase in influence through membership in IGOs, such as the European Union. Also for countries with more influence such as France and Germany they are beneficial as the nation increases influence in the smaller countries' internal affairs and expanding other nations dependence on themselves, so to preserve allegiance
3. Security: Membership in an IGO such as NATO gives security benefits to member countries. This provides an arena where political differences can be resolved.
4. Improve democracy and the likelihood of democratic survival: It has been noted that member countries experience a greater degree of democracy and those democracies survive longer.

Reasons for rejecting membership:

1. Loss of sovereignty: Membership often comes with a loss of state sovereignty as treaties are signed which require cooperation on the part of all member states.
2. Insufficient benefits: Often membership does not bring about substantial enough benefits to warrant membership in the organization.

Privileges and immunities

Intergovernmental organizations are provided with privileges and immunities that are intended to ensure their independent and effective functioning. They are specified in the treaties that give rise to the organization (such as the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations and the Agreement on the Privileges and Immunities of the International Criminal Court), which are normally supplemented by further multinational agreements and national regulations (for example the International Organizations Immunities Act in the United States). The organizations are thereby immune from the jurisdiction of national courts.

Rather than by national jurisdiction, legal accountability is intended to be ensured by legal mechanisms that are internal to the intergovernmental organization itself and access to administrative tribunals. In the course of many court cases where private parties tried to pursue claims against international organizations, there has been a gradual realization that alternate means of dispute settlement are required, as states have fundamental human rights obligations to provide plaintiffs with access to court in view of their right to a fair trial. Otherwise, the organizations' immunities may be put in question in national and international courts. Some organizations hold proceedings before tribunals relating to their organization to be confidential, and in some instances have threatened disciplinary action should an employee disclose any of the relevant information. Such confidentiality has been criticized as a lack of transparency.

The immunities also extend to employment law. In this regard, immunity from national jurisdiction necessitates that reasonable alternative means are available to effectively protect employees' rights; in this context, a first instance Dutch court considered an estimated duration of proceedings before the Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organisation of 15 years to be too long.

Strengths and weaknesses

These are some of the strengths and weaknesses of IGOs:

Strengths:

1. They hold state authority.
2. Their institutions are permanent.
3. They provide a forum for discussion.
4. They are issue specific.
5. They provide information.
6. They allow multilateral cooperation.

Weaknesses:

1. Membership is limited. Prohibits the membership of private citizens. This makes IGOs undemocratic. In addition, not all IGOs allow universal membership.
2. IGOs often overlap resulting in a complex network.
3. States have to give up part of their sovereignty, which weakens the state's ability to assert its authority.
4. Inequality among state members creates biases and can lead powerful states to misuse these organizations.

They can be deemed unfair as countries with a higher percentage voting power have the right to veto any decision that is not in their favor, leaving the smaller countries powerless.