Any effort to upgrade the capacity of the state to implement social policy should be seen as part of the overall development effort. Privileging the provision of social and basic services by the private sector or external entities could provide immediate advantages, but would not exempt the state from the obligation to set standards and monitor and regulate such provisioning. In the area of trade, the need for uniform international trade disciplines must be balanced against the need to facilitate the increasing participation of economies with more limited capacity. There is also a glaring absence of multilateral mechanisms for more humane and mutually beneficial migration. The international aid system is rife with costly duplication, fragmentation among donors and misalignment with the needs of aid recipients.