Publication

Regional organizations have gained an important role in governance transfer because they constitute an intermediary level of agency between the nation-state and global institutions. This paper maps the governance transfer of nine regional organizations. The authors analyze the objectives, approaches, and instruments used to promote the creation and transformation of governance institutions in target countries. The comparison shows that similar standards and instruments have been adopted throughout the areas of study. At the same time, the paper finds important differences with regard to when and how the regional organizations prescribe and promote 'good' governance institutions at the national level. The paper calls for a more agency-centered approach that conceptualizes governance transfer as an institutional choice by states.