Yulieth Martínez

This dissertation examines the Regional IOs' responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, assessing their emergency measures (EMs). The primary objective is to analyze the role of Regional IOs in managing transboundary emergencies, focusing on their institutional responses to COVID-19 and the dynamics of exceptionalism triggered by the pandemic. Specifically, the dissertation addresses the following questions: (1) How did Regional IOs respond to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic? (2) What indicates a greater or lesser level of regional IO response during emergencies (the COVID-19 pandemic)? (3) What were the characteristics of the Exceptional Emergency Measures (EEMs) employed? These questions are explored across three interrelated chapters, each utilizing a different methodological approach. Data is drawn from the Emergency International Measures Database (EIMD), which includes a novel dataset of 729 emergency measures issued by Regional IOs. Chapter 1 establishes the conceptual framework by conducting a scoping review of emergency politics and policy. It clarifies key concepts and identifies gaps in existing literature. Chapter 2 offers a comparative analysis of six regional IOs, developing the Emergency Measures Index (EMI) through computational text analysis and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to evaluate their regional responses. Chapter 3 conducts a case study of the European Union (EU), examining its emergency measures through mixed-methods research, which combines Large Language Model (LLM), Structural Topic Modeling (STM) and dictionary-based text analysis, with a qualitative case study of the EU's vaccine export transparency mechanism. The findings reveal significant variation in regional IOs' responses to COVID-19, highlighting the influence of institutional design, decision-making flexibility, and available resources. This study contributes to the literature on crisis management and emergency politics by highlighting the tensions between efficiency and democratic legitimacy that regional IOs encounter when addressing emergencies. The implications of this research emphasize the need for further exploration of regional governance mechanisms to improve global preparedness and response for future transnational emergencies.