Promoting the adoption of international standards

No policy stands alone, not only internally – as all domestic policies are somehow interrelated – but also “externally”, especially in a globalised economy where the level of interdependency between States, not to speak of the global challenges, is blurring their respective spheres of competence. Against such backdrop, the alignment of domestic policies to international standards is a double-edged sword, as it can certainly improve their effectiveness and efficiency but usually does so from a top-down approach that limits the choice over the path of reforms.

This is why international norms need to be adopted or transposed not only through democratic institutions – in most countries Parliaments would be in charge of their ratification – but also through multi-stakeholder policy dialogues that assess the feasibility of the ensuing reforms within the policy context in which they are expected to be enforced. Failing to do so contributes to the feeling of powerlessness of many citizens against decisions that are being taken abroad and, more importantly, jeopardizes the effectiveness of any policy reform, however well-intentioned it may be, as it imposes ready-made solutions that seldom translate automatically into reality. Even worse, it can provide citizens with rights that can neither be protected nor enforced.

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