GOVERNANCE
that any reforms made to the International Monetary Fund have been “extremely small”. And in any case, Brazil has complex challenges built into the Rio Summit beyond the question of institutional reform. Externally, the shadow over the summit will be cast by complicated geopolitical tensions. With the lessons of the 2022 Indonesian and 2023 Indian presidencies in mind, adopting a restrained approach to transformative institutional reform offers some benefits. At the New Delhi Summit, President Lula said:“We cannot allow geopolitical issues to hijack G20 bodies’ discussion agendas.
A divided G20 does not interest us. We can only tackle present-day challenges through joint action.” DEMOCRATISING THE G20 Moreover, President Lula must manage intense domestic sensitivities about the Rio Summit. There is pressure to localise. Here, India’s experience is valuable in the lengths taken to decentralise the G20’s activities. Brazil has held G20 meetings in “many Brazilian cities” to “democratise” the G20 and make it popular among civil society. Nor is this approach all about style, given a deep
appreciation that there needs to be a link between the G20 and everyday lives. As Lula commented around the time of the New Delhi Summit, it does not matter how much money is “spent” on hosting the G20 but whether it is “invested” for the betterment of the country. This is not to minimise the symbolic importance of playing up the need for transformational global institutional reform – and showcasing Brazil’s leadership credentials in pursuing this objective. That said, the salience placed by Brazil on instrumental performance has shaped and should continue to shape its hosting function. In terms of policy objectives, this approach has prioritised global equality on the G20 agenda. An ambitious and divisive tilt into institutional reform risks jeopardising the success of the summit in functional terms. Regarding the hosting function, Brazil is considerably motivated to portray itself as a champion of global governance. Still, care must be taken that hosting the G20 does not reveal confusion or even distraction between different forms of leadership. Linking the Brazilian presidency symbolically to the lure of transformative global institutional reform is certainly commendable, but privileging the G20 as the forum to promote this goal should not get in the way of securing substantial achievements.
ANDREW F COOPER Andrew F Cooper is University Research Chair in the Department of Political Science and professor at the Balsillie School of International Affairs and the University of Waterloo. From 2004 to 2010, he was associate director and distinguished fellow at The Centre for International Governance Innovation. His books include The Concertation Impulse in World Politics: Contestation over Fundamental Institutions and the Constrictions of Institutionalist International Relations and BRICS: A Very Short Introduction . He is also co-author of The Group of Twenty and co-editor of The Oxford Handbook of Modern Diplomacy .
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2024 — G20 BRAZIL: THE RIO SUMMIT
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