The United Nations and democratic globalization: A reconnaissance of the issues

The concern of this chapter is to discuss some ideas on the role of the United Nations in influencing the democratic development of economies, thereby to contribute to economic and political debate about the organisation’s role in the modern world. It is an initial reconnaissance of the issues. Without attempting to provide a detailed history or analysis of the current situation within the organisation, and maintaining a distance from the baggage of its internal politics, the objective is to present and consider a perspective based upon a particular analysis of processes of economic development. The analysis focuses on the inclusion of all peoples in the realisation of the economic development goals that they themselves would democratically identify and seek, given the opportunity. We suggest that it is an approach that is apparently consistent with many of the principles of the United Nations. Most notably, it has the realisation of the aspirations of peoples at its heart and to that degree is in line with Annan’s (2000) vision for the United Nations in the twenty-first century; if that vision is meant to be real and realisable, the issues we identify and discuss represent the economic and political challenges that must be overcome.