External publications

In search of a Plan B: the future of Global development lies in “Like-Minded Internationalism”

Ishmael, Len / Stephan Klingebiel / Andy Sumner
External Publications (2025)

published on cgdev.org, 12.06.2025

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As we move further into a decade marked by geopolitical turbulence, institutional retrenchment, and a waning commitment to liberal multilateralism, the question before us is not whether the international order is changing—but how to adapt. In a new paper, published by the Policy Center for the New South, we argue that development cooperation is at a critical inflection point. The post-World War II liberal consensus—built on universal values and led largely by the United States—is breaking down under the pressure of renewed interest in nationalism, strategic decoupling, the weaponisation of policies, and the marginalization of international institutions. Nowhere is this more evident than in the United States’ symbolic withdrawal from the Sustainable Development Goals in early 2025. An earlier version of this piece was published on From Poverty to Power.