Multiple streams theory: Insight into the global compact on migration

The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration (GCM) was founded based on the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants to address the immigrants’ needs and hosting states’ responsibilities. This study aims to better understand how GCM became part of the global public policy agenda and was formulated through the interactions of three main streams to create “the window of opportunity.” This study reflects upon the knowledge of the policy process through leveraging the multiple streams theory (MST) and modifying it to reconcile the differences between the national and the global public policies. The synthetic review shows the convergence of the problem, regime, and policy streams to affect the global agenda on the basis of global partnership and the global community. It also recognizes the actors who participated in creating GCM and their influence on this process. The utilization of a modified version of MST apprehends the interactive drivers of the GCM issue to enter the global public policy agenda and the global agora of formation. This study provides a structural explanation of the GCM’s composition and illustrates that “focusing events” in a state require global cooperation to mitigate the turmoil and potential spillover effects of the crisis. Lastly, the review reveals the main phases in GCM development.