February 2024 Committees

gENERAL ASSEMBLY (GA)

DISARMAMENT AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY COMMITTEE (DISEC)

One of the six main committees in the UN General Assembly, and a constant in all Model United Nations Conferences, DISEC deals with and finds solutions to problems regarding security and weapons across the world. All 193 member states of the UN attend this committee, and topics covered in this committee can concern nuclear weapons, weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, arms trades, and regional security. The main goal of this committee is to protect, maintain, and strengthen international peace and security from various threats, originating from both state actors and non-state actors.

Topic A: Combatting Terrorism in the Digital Age

Topic B: Preventing the Arms Race in the Arctic

ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL COMMITTEE (ECOFIN)

ECOFIN is also one of the General Assembly’s six sub-committees, and specialises in international financial and economic issues. Its general focus is on topics pertaining to development, such as macroeconomic policy, globalisation, and sustainability. Its mandate also includes dealing with countries in special situations, such as the sovereignty of the Arab Population in the Occupied Syrian Golan over their resources. Its work on a subject begins only once the general debate of the plenary body is completed (as per UN GA rules), and it often works in collaboration with other bodies (such as the UNDESA or ECOSOC) on specific issues.

Topic A: Water as the new Oil - Discussing the economic measures needed to combat the effects of increasing water scarcity in the 21st century

Topic B: Trade Wars and Trade Pacts - Structures and policies of free trade and how to organise them fairly among countries of differing developmental levels

EConomic and social Council / Regional Bodies (ES)

UN Human rights council (unhrc)

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is a specialized body within the United Nations responsible for promoting and protecting human rights around the world. Established in 2006, the UNHRC addresses human rights violations, conducts reviews of member states' human rights records, and makes recommendations for improvement. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, it consists of 47 member states elected by the UN General Assembly, with a commitment to uphold the highest standards of human rights.

Topic A: The Right to Privacy in the Digital Age

Topic B: Government Response to Incidents of Direct Action

COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN (CSW)

A commission of the ECOSOC, the CSW is the principal intergovernmental body dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women. A large part of its responsibilities is reviewing the progress of the implementation of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. Recent priority themes have included the improvement of access of women to science and technology, the empowerment of rural women, the elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls, and the examination of social protection systems for women.

Topic A: Women in STEM - Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women in the Era of Climate

Topic B: Women in Zones of Conflict - Protection from Gender-based Violence and Female Participation in Peacekeeping Efforts

SPECIALISED AGENCIES, OFFICES, ORGANISATIONS, AND TREATIES (SA)

WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION (WHO)

The WHO is a specialised agency of the United Nations that is concerned with world public health. It was established on 7 April 1948, and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. Since its establishment, it has played a leading role in the eradication of smallpox, and its current priorities include: communicable diseases—in particular HIV/AIDS, Ebola, malaria, and tuberculosis; the mitigation of the effects of non-communicable diseases such as sexual and reproductive health, development, and ageing; nutrition, food security and healthy eating; occupational health; substance abuse; and driving the development of reporting, publications, and networking.

Topic A: Prevention, Containment and Control of Epidemics and Pandemics

Topic B: Combatting the Emerging Mental Health Crisis Worldwide

THE 28TH SESSION OF THE CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES (COP28)

The 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (UNCCC), also known as COP28, is scheduled to be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in November 2023 t. It is an annual conference held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The conference serves as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC Parties (Conference of the Parties) to assess progress in dealing with climate change, and beginning in the mid-1990s, to negotiate the Kyoto Protocol to establish legally binding obligations for developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. From 2005 the Conferences have also served as the ‘Conference of the Parties Serving as the Meeting of Parties to the Kyoto Protocol’; parties to the Convention that are not parties to the Protocol can participate in Protocol-related meetings as observers. From 2011 the meetings have also been used to negotiate the Paris Agreement as part of the Durban platform activities until its conclusion in 2015, which created a general path towards climate action.

Topic A: Disproportionate Effects of Climate Change on Developing Countries

Topic B: Zero Net Emissions 2050