ABSTRACT
Chapter 1 explores depoliticization practices based on expert knowledge performed in different contexts such as the FAO, the ILO, the IMF, the OECD, UNDP, UNESCO, UNEP, the UNHCR and the WTO. It unpacks the process of claiming expertise by capturing how IOs position themselves as experts within the international system and unveils a two-fold process of depoliticization. First, IOs deny their political agency by limiting their role to bringing expert knowledge based on internal and external expertise. In other words, they depoliticize the process of knowledge production. Second, IOs propose a technical interpretation of international public problems and technical solutions to address these problems. They silence the complexity of the world’s most pressing problems by turning political and structural causes into technicalities.
