Higher education in Asian countries and the role of international ...

2 Review of the research literature
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The role of IGOs has become an important topic of discussions and debates because of their
enhanced presence in the global and regional political landscape and sometimes “controversial”
participation in international social and economic activities. This changing scenario has been
attracting more and more researcher, critics and analysts to study different aspects of the IGOs
that may include; philosophies, theories, development, structure, functions, efficiency, roles,
impact etc. Despite increased interest of scholars in the study of IGOs, theoretical and empirical
aspects, few have looked directly at the issue of performance and their outcomes (Gutner &
Thompson, 2010). Much of the research available about intergovernmental organizations has
concentrated on theories, structure and their functions (Archer, 2001), (Koremenos, Lipson, &
Snidal, 2001), (Haack & Mathiason, 2010). Some research is available on the role of IGOs in
adult education, female education, education for all and financing education.
Intergovernmental organizations‟ prominent role in the world politics, economics and other
human endeavors has brought them in the limelight consequently IGOs have become as an
emerging field of study in the domains of economics, political science and sociology at academic
level. The existing pool of research on IGOs consists of a wide variety of scientific studies that
covers different aspects: structure, organization, functions etc. IGOs are not homogenous
entities: they have different philosophies, charters, structures, approaches, and reasons of
existence. So there exists a variety of organization on the world horizon. In today‟s globalized
world it is difficult to imagine an international system without international organizations
because these institutions have become an indispensable part of global governance (Frey &
Stutzer, 2006).
Since the emergence of IGOs as a field of study, the sharpest debate among researchers has been
theoretical: Do international institutions really matter? But from this debate an important inquiry
is missing: how these institutions actually work (Koremenos, Lipson, & Snidal, 2001). The
answer of these questions depends on the response of another very basic, important and fact
finding issue: What is the role of IGOs in the societies? Without studying IGOs‟ role, it is
meaningless to go for inquiries pertaining to their existence and functioning. In an international
system both states and IGOs are active actors in the process of development of higher education
so the successful role of such international bodies depends upon multiple factors: What are the