Experts explore governance future amid geopolitical disorder

Doha, Qatar: The final day of the Doha Forum 2025 concluded with a provocative discussion on whether the world s current governance systems can be rep...

Doha, Qatar: The final day of the Doha Forum 2025 concluded with a provocative discussion on whether the world’s current governance systems can be repaired or must be fundamentally redesigned for a rapidly changing global era.

A panel session entitled, ‘The Future of Governance: React or Reboot?’ brought together leading thinkers and diplomats, including Dr. Bruno Maçães, Senior Advisor at Flint Global; Namatai Kwekweza, Founder of WELEAD Africa; Prof. Erin McCandless, Director of the Qatar–South Africa Centre for Peace and Intercultural Understanding; and Prof. Yiwei Wang of Renmin University of China.

Their discussion unfolded against a backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions, technological disruption, declining trust in public institutions, and increasing scepticism around traditional models of liberal democracy.

One of the central questions raised during the dialogue was whether liberal democracy has reached its limits. Prof. Erin McCandless challenged the assumption that democracy itself is broken, arguing instead that its implementation has undermined its legitimacy.

“Liberal democracy is something that is dead or failed, right?” she said. “I would argue it’s under pressure not because of the core value but because of the way it has been manipulated and implemented in ways that project hypocrisy and double standards.”