Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, international organizations had to adapt or modify their internal working methods and the procedural rules governing them. The purpose of the research is to answer the following questions: 1) what type of impact did the Covid-19 pandemic have on the internal working procedures of international organizations?, 2) what type of law-making instruments was prompted by the pandemic?, 3) in which ways did international law deal with the "exception" of the pandemic and was it capable to bring it back into the framework of "ordinary" rules governing the functioning of international organizations?
Answering these research questions is important in order to better anticipate similar exceptional circumstances so to enhance the resilience of international organizations. In addition, the analysis of the different ways in which internal procedures have been adapted or derogated from reveals some crucial aspects of the ordinary functioning of international organizations that are generally taken for granted and rarely investigated.
The innovative character of the research project lays first of all on its subject-matter. When compared to substantive responses to the pandemic, procedural issues concerning the internal functioning of international organizations are largely unexplored. Nevertheless, these aspects are crucial as they ensure the proper functioning of the main actors of international cooperation. The special interest of the inquiry is also connected to the fact that the procedural regimes making such international cooperation possible in times of health emergency reveal some crucial aspects of international decision-making. To give one example, many organizations had to quickly adopt special procedures in order to continue performing their functions and deliberating and such procedures were radically simplified at the detriment of informal, parallel, diplomatic processes of negotiations that revealed to be essential to reach consensus and take decisions in the framework of international organizations.
As a consequence, an inquiry into the internal working procedures of international organizations and their capacity to adapt to extreme circumstances is expected to reveal important aspects of international decision-making. By answering the research questions listed above the present research project intends to provide a better knowledge of the functioning of international organizations, of their working procedures and international law-making. In addition, it can give important insights on the way to enhance the resilience of international organizations. More generally, the results of the analysis can clarify the capacity of international decision-making procedures to change in extreme circumstances and ensure legal stability even in times of major developments.