Terry O'Brien, Deputy Librarian, Waterford Institute of Technology, Waterford, Ireland
2010/017
International Organizations: A Dictionary and Directory (7th ed.)
Giuseppe Schiavone
Basingstoke
2008
978 0 230 57322 2
Review
iii+411 pp.
Dictionaries, Directories, International organizations
Reference Reviews
24
1
2010
29-30
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
0950-4125
This seventh edition of International Organizations: A Dictionary and Directory, remains a key and important reference work in the field of international studies and affairs. The title is of course synonymous with Giuseppe Schiavone, whose credentials in this field, as amongst other things, Professor of International Organization at the Italian National School of Public Administration, are beyond reproach. Just over 25 years since the first edition was published in 1983, there has been a new edition generally every three or four years. The last edition was only three years ago, leading one to reasonably ask how really necessary the current edition is. Bearing in mind geopolitical shifts and the constantly changing international arena, one could contend that this alone merits the new edition. Rapid changes in technology and globalization do undoubtedly make Schiavone's job more difficult – the Internet has made opinion forming much more immediate and perception driven. Setting that aside, this publication is a sound and valuable quality reference resource for students and scholars of international politics, international relations, international studies, politics and history. Some prior knowledge of international affairs is almost certainly required – those that know the G3 is now the G2, the G7 is really the G8 (actually probably G9), the G15 is a G18, the G77 has 130 members and the G20 controls over 90 percent of the world's GNP will appreciate this publication, but this book is most likely of real use for academic, specialist or reference libraries. Although not inexpensive, it compares well with Routledge's Europa Directory of International Organizations (2009), which although twice the size, is also twice the price. The quality of Schiavone's writing is high, and he gives the subject matter a real depth and balance.
International Organizations comprises the main dictionary of some 350 pages, an introductory 20-page essay, various supplementary tables, classifications and indices which one might unfairly label “filler”. In fact, the level of detail and the multiplicity of acronyms can be rather overwhelming, so the index of names and of acronyms is both useful and necessary. The glossary although sparse and short, is helpful particularly for the uninitiated or those unused to the international organization (IO) terminology used throughout the publication. The Foundation dates briefly outline significant chronological dates starting from the 1815 Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine (CCNR) to the founding of Interpol (1923), through to the Latin Union (1954), Greenpeace (1971), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in 1991, and up to the most recent 2007 founding of the International Olive Council (IOC) formerly the International Olive Oil Council (b. 1959). The membership of major regional organizations (and of the UN and specialized agencies) tables are an excellent and quick ready reference. These also highlight the difficulty for such a publication in remaining completely current. The tables tell us, for example, that Cuba has been suspended from the Organization of American States (OAS) since the 1960s, although this suspension has been recently lifted under the Honduran Presidency (despite Castro claiming that Cuba is not interested in re-entering the grouping). Further, Hong Kong is an Associate member of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the South African Customs Union, 100 years old, has just five members, only three countries in Europe are not part of the Council of Europe (Andorra, Monaco and Belarus) and although most countries are part of the WTO (World Tourism Organization, since rebranded the UNWTO), many are also part of the WTO (World Trade Organization), with very few members of neither (these being Vanuata, Montenegro and Somalia). The Classification of Organizations section subdivides entries into Universal (e.g. United Nations) Regional (further subdivided by geographic region, e.g. African Development Bank) and Sectional (also by subject, e.g. Debt rescheduling – Paris Club, Humanitarian Assistance – Amnesty International) and provides further systematic assistance to the reader.
It is obviously difficult to derive precise classifications for organizations, as by their nature they will overlap in functions and responsibilities. The Classification of Countries and Membership of Major Groups are divided primarily on the basis of economic status (this will undoubtedly have changed in some countries in the past twelve months). This list is not devised specifically by Schiavone but rather reflects the accepted classifications and groupings that have “evolved over time” amongst countries. Advanced or High Income Economies form one major group and consist of the US, Canada, Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the newly industrialized economies of Asia such as Singapore and Hong Kong. Most of these countries are highly developed (in the sense of what we in the West perceive to be “developed”), are committed to open market economies and some form of democracy. Important groups would include the G7, G8, the OECD, the EU, and the Eurozone. The second major grouping is rather euphemistically described as Emerging Market and Developing Countries. These consist of all other countries and represent those with the lowest GDP. Further geographic subdivision may be applied as well as other factors such as fuel exporting countries (e.g. Azerbaijan, Kuwait, UAE) and non-fuel exporting countries (e.g. Chile, Malawi, Sierra Leone). Other criteria such as finance distinguish emerging and developing countries into net creditor (very small but significant in number and including China, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia) and net debtor countries (large in number and includes more obvious countries such as Angola, Chad, Iraq, Laos, Sudan, Yemen but also less obvious countries such as India, Malta, Mexico, Poland, Ukraine). Further classifications include LDCs – least developed countries (more than 50 countries with average annual income per person under $900, LLDCs – land-locked developing countries (e.g. Bolivia, Chad, Mongolia), SIDS – small island developing states, (reading like a list of most desirable holiday destinations, e.g. Maldives, Saint Lucia, Tonga) and HIPCs – heavily indebted poor countries, most of which are located in sub-Saharan Africa.
As you would expect, well known and more important Dictionary entries get greater treatment, for example the Council of Europe, United Nations (192 members since Montenegro joined in 2006) WTO, EU, IBRD, OECD, NATO have extensive accounts, whilst others perhaps less recognized, such the International Copper Study Group, Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries, Desert Locust Control Organization for East Africa, the International Commission of Jurists, get shorter mention. There are more than 250 entries in all, each with introductory comments, sections on origins and development, membership, objectives, structure, activities and external relations; other directory style details such as languages, website, address, publications, references etc. are also included.
As in previous editions, the introduction gives a broad historical survey of the subject. In an excellent essay, Schiavone displays his mastery of the subject. Interstate relations are contextualized and the history, rationale and evolution of international organizations are outlined. The paramount value of the state in international relations is underlined and the “twin challenges of globalization and fragmentation” are highlighted. He refers to the impact of technology and the market economy – symbols of globalization, and their effect on social inequality, “economic growth does not automatically translate into a human progress”. Schiavone plots the legal framework of intergovernmental co-operation – essentially treaties, and the origin and early development of multilateral institutions – from ad hoc to standing international conferences. He further traces the growth of global and regional co-operation post Second World War, the widening remit of the UN, and the international responses to the “economic, monetary and energy crises of the 1970s”. Bringing us into the twenty-first century, Schiavone sketches the weakening of multilateralism and the emerging problems of the 1980 s asserting that the “abrupt end of the bipolar world, initiated with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, altered deep rooted patterns that had inspired the theory and practice of international organizations for several decades”.
With the dissolution of old alliances, society has become increasingly heterogeneous and the threats of transnational organized crime and international terrorism have come increasingly to the fore. Although the conventional ideological East-West conflict has faded, new East-West conflicts are emerging based often on religious notions. North-South disparities in terms of economic development remain. Beyond the post Cold War era, the post 9/11 world, with massive economic and fiscal issues, vast inequalities even in the “First World”, increasing fundamentalism and regional conflicts with global implications, presents huge challenges for the international community and international organizations – “under contrasting pressures of globalization and fragmentation, international institutions are becoming more numerous, more variegated and with a constantly expanding membership in an effort to meet the manifold challenges of the new millennium”. Despite an inability to prevent world wars or regional and international conflict, Schiavone believes international organizations have value and merit, the (sic.) “multiplication of international institutions … suggests a number of considerations … whatever their shortcomings and limitations, international organizations continue to be the key engine for fostering international co-operation and integration”. An indispensable and highly recommended reference book for the field of international studies.