DEC EDITION (2)

EMERGING WORLD ORDER
POST COVID-19
- By Anoosha Jamal
Within a period of few months, the coronavirus
has been spread across the world and firmly
established as the biggest disease outbreak since
the 1918 Spanish flu. No one would expect that
the new decade of the twenty first century would
begin with a rapidly evolving pandemic that
erratically attacks countries, both poor and rich.
The impact of Coronavirus was pervasive; it
affected all segments of our lives, including
society, politics, economy, governance, trade and
development. The disease’s most profound and
consequential impact, however, was felt in its
ability to reshape the global order as it stands.
The global order has already undergone a steady
metamorphosis. The rise of nationalist
movements, de-globalisation forces, protectionist
sentiments and a lack of faith in multilateralism
indicated the departure from the established
norms of global engagement. The rise of great
power rivalries between the US and China with
countries caught between the Chinese
revisionism and American exceptionalism has
further accentuated this departure. The
onslaught of Coronavirus has hastened the
denouement of these processes and pushed the
entire world to a new trajectory altogether.
Similar to World War II, the Great Depression
and the 2008 financial crisis, the pandemic has
also been a watershed moment in the history of
humankind.
The two most important hypotheses of a post
Coronavirus world are - the emergence of a world
order where China reigns supreme in a new
unipolar world, and the second, where the world
collectively shuns China for its “Chernobyl
moment” and embarks on a different global
chapter. It was perhaps too early to forecast
what the global order would look like once the
pandemic moves past its worst stage.
Nonetheless, a section-wise study of elements
that impact geopolitics, multilateralism,
geoeconomics, and geotechnology can help build
a clearer picture of what we may come to expect
in the future. As global actors are pushed deeper
into ‘uncharted territory’, this volume of
selected essays seeks to describe, investigate and
critically analyze key factors that will shape the
world’s journey to a post-COVID-19 era.
At present, The new world order offers limitless
opportunity for India but for the country to be
ready to participate in it, there is a need to
establish regulatory standards on data and
taxation in general, Tata Sons chairman N
Chandrasekaran said on Saturday.
But it is still difficult to discern the shape, form
or substance of the post COVID-19 world order
as a whole. Nevertheless, by bringing some of the
best global minds together to meditate on this
issue, this may endeavour to inform academics,
researchers, journalists, and stakeholders on
understanding the most pernicious, significant
and world-changing event of our times.
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