Economic Security

Economic security, broadly defined, is people’s ability to continuously satisfy their requirements. It is linked to both the concept of economic well-being and the concept of the modern welfare state, a political institution that commits to providing basic security guarantees to its residents. Attempts to provide economic security are intended to act as a check on market volatility, which historians argue has grown more crucial in the years after the demise of the Soviet Union and the supremacy of market capitalism. It may be even more critical in view of falling worker bargaining strength in post-industrial economies such as the United States since the 1970s and the economic uncertainty induced by COVID-19. 

Cultural norms influence what is included in the list of criteria for economic security, implying that both what qualifies as economic security and how it is calculated to have evolved through time. To assess economic security, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), an organisation that works to strengthen global economic security, has established five essential livelihood outcomes: 

• Food consumption 
• Food production 
• Living conditions 
• Income 
• The capacity of civil society organisations and the government to meet people’s needs 

In Article 25, the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) delineates the right to a reasonable standard of living and to “security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in the circumstances beyond their control.” 

Energy Security

The conception of energy security arose as a result of the 1970s oil crisis, which raised awareness of the subject and prompted the establishment of the International Energy Agency (IEA), whose main aim is to support the stability of the global energy supply. Energy security has varied over time, but the underlying concept of a reasonably affordable and reliable energy source for the foreseeable future has remained consistent. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has a more comprehensive definition: “Energy security: The goal of a given country, or the global community as a whole, to maintain an adequate energy supply. Measures encompass safeguarding access to energy resources; enabling development and deployment of technologies; building sufficient infrastructure to generate, store and transmit energy supplies; ensuring enforceable contracts of delivery; and access to energy at affordable prices for a specific society or groups in society.” 

Essentially, a nation should be able to function despite short-term disruptions in energy supplies. Some fundamental challenges must be addressed to achieve this stability and energy security: Energy source diversification, the timeliness and quality of information flow, collaboration between and among consumers and producers, investment, development and research, and technical advancement. These principles must be addressed to assure long-term energy market and supply stability and to deal with short-term shocks such as terrorist attacks, grid breakdowns, harsh weather conditions, and other such catastrophes. 

Human Security

Human security is a national and international security approach that prioritises humans and their complex social and economic relationships. The notion of human security differs from traditional security studies, which focus on state security. Individuals are the subjects of the human security approach, and the final aim is to protect people against conventional (i.e., military) and nontraditional dangers such as poverty and sickness. Moving the security agenda beyond state security means complementing and expanding, not replacing it. The concept that human security deprivation may undermine peace and stability within and between governments is central to this strategy. In contrast, an overemphasis on state security can harm human security. 

Climate Security

As climate change accelerates, its effects intensify existing social, economic, and environmental issues in various situations, potentially contributing to local, national, and worldwide insecurity. Climate change-related security risks include food, water, and energy supply implications, increased competition for natural resources, loss of employment, climate-related disasters, and forced migration and relocation. For over a decade, the international community has fiercely discussed the possibility of conflict and violence between groups or states driven by climate change (climate security risk). Despite increased awareness of the interconnections between climate change, peace, and security, there are few instances of integrated programmatic approaches that address specific threats at the nexus of climate change and insecurity. 

Climate change is more likely to overwhelm conflict, and crisis-affected situations, yet too often, peacebuilding and stabilisation initiatives fail to incorporate climate-related consequences or environmental threats. Simultaneously, insecurity impedes climate change adaptation efforts, making vulnerable communities even poorer and less adaptable to interconnected climate and security crises. Still, climate change adaptation initiatives frequently fail to fully integrate peacebuilding or conflict prevention goals. 

Cyber Security

The steps used to secure devices, networks, and data against unwanted access and unlawful usage are referred to as cybersecurity. Cybersecurity measures might include preventing hackers from breaking into computers and other linked devices and obtaining sensitive information. Phishing, malware, eavesdropping, and denial-of-service (DoS) assaults are all common cyberattacks. 

Given the rapidly evolving technological landscape and the increasing adoption of software across various sectors such as finance, government, military, retail, hospitals, education, and energy, to name a few, more and more information is becoming digital and accessible through wireless and wired digital communication networks, as well as the widespread internet. This sensitive information is valuable to cybercriminals, so it is critical to safeguard it with robust cybersecurity systems and practices. Cybersecurity measures include cyberattack prevention, detection, and response. Any data kept on an Internet-connected device, computer system, or network is vulnerable to hacking. This can be avoided if sufficient precautions are taken, given that the world is more dependent on computers than ever before. 

National Security

National security refers to the government’s capacity to use different avenues to safeguard and defend a sovereign state, including its inhabitants, economy, and institutions, as a duty of government. Originally envisaged as a defence against military assault, national security is now commonly recognised to encompass non-military components such as terrorism prevention, crime reduction, border security, economic security, energy security, environmental security, food security, and cyber-security. Similarly, in addition to the acts of other nation states, national security concerns include the actions of violent non-state actors, drug cartels, and multinational businesses, as well as the consequences of natural disasters. 

Although nations’ approaches vary, with some beginning to prioritise non-military action to address structural sources of insecurity, different types of coercive force, notably Military Capabilities, predominate. The extent of these skills has grown. Military capabilities have always been mostly land- or sea-based, and in smaller nations, they remain so. Other possible warfare domains today include the law, air, space, the internet, and psychological operations. Military capabilities built for these areas can be utilised for defensive and offensive goals, such as conquering and annexing land and resources.