A Thought on Why the Network of Intergovernmental Organizations Exploded in the Late 20th Century

As the figure shows, there appears to have been an explosive growth of intergovernmental organizations in the last four decades. At the beginning of the 20th century there were very few of these organizations. The reference given above cites 37 in 1908.

There was a wave of globalization that took place from say 1820 until 1914. It was based on improved transportation of goods via railroad and ship, improved communications via telegraph and mail, and the growth of manufacturing. It was also built on a political basis of colonialism, and institutions within the imperial frameworks of the colonial empires. The few intergovernmental organizations included the Universal Postal Union, the Red Cross, and the Pan American Health Organization. The wave broke on the schoals of World War I and the Great Depression.

A new wave of globalization started about 1960 and continues today. It too was based on improved transportation and communications technology and systems, but this time developed in a post-colonial world. The League of Nations, while in many ways a failed experiment, laid the foundations for the more successful United Nations and its related family of organizations. Thus there were by the latter part of the 20th century successful models of intergovernmental organizations.

It occurs to me that a wave of globalization requires many problems to be solved which are beyond the capacities of individual nations working alone. Imperial powers provided a means for coordinating problem solving among colonies and the colonizing power. In recent decades, countries have used the model of intergovernmental organizations such as those of the United Nations systen or the Bretton Woods organizations to approach the emerging problems of globalizing economies and societies.