SIMUN is Back! “Virtual” MUN 2021
The International French School (Singapore) organised the first online edition of this exclusive conference from 11th to 13th March 2021. The Singapore International Model United Nations (SIMUN) conference brings together students from international schools in Singapore to discuss topical and current world issues.
The SIMUN conference is a three-day educational programme in which secondary students learn about diplomacy, international relations and the United Nations. The conference takes place every year in mid-March at IFS.
Participants in MUN conferences, called delegates, are placed in committees and assigned to a country to represent. Delegates conduct research before the conference and formulate positions to debate with their fellow delegates in the committee, remaining true to the actual position of the country they represent.
Students have to come up with acceptable solutions to the majority of representatives. Inculcating skills of negotiation, public speaking, conflict resolution, cooperation, and leadership.
This year, five international schools (German European School (Singapore), Overseas Family School, UWC South East Asia Dover, UWC South East Asia East and IFS) representing over 80 delegates attended the three-day conference. Twenty-six IFS delegates (from grade 10 to 12) took part in the online event representing Ireland, Kenya, Norway, Russia and the USA.
For the opening ceremony, H.E. Mr Marc Abensour, French Ambassador to Singapore, welcomed participants and explained, “As you will probably experiment during this virtual SIMUN, it is quite challenging to negotiate issues […] without meeting your counterparts. […] I wish all of you very fulfilled negotiations.”
This year’s committees and issues were the following:
World Health Organisation, Environment and Development, Human Rights Council and Security Council.
Secondary school students from IFS and other international schools had to exchange, debate and propose resolutions on a variety of themes and topics, such as :
– measures to manage and prevent all current and future pandemics,
– measures to combat the medical black markets,
– prevention and response to oil spills,
– measures to combat the negative effects of deforestation,
– measures to ensure gender equality,
– the conflict on the India-China border,
– the situation in the West African Sahel.
Joy Tabet, Secretary-General of SIMUN 2021, said: “At IFS, we are a strong team of young minds who all want to make a difference by challenging the world we live in.”
After many enriching interventions and exchanges, here are some of the resolutions that were voted on and adopted:
Regarding the South China Sea regional conflict in the Security Council, a resolution was passed to establish a task force to safeguard the region. Composed of peacekeepers from member countries and maritime experts, the task force will patrol and maintain order in the South China Sea.
On the regulation of black markets in the WHO, a resolution was passed calling on member nations to put into action procedures that would identify black markets to sell unregulated medicines. The creation of “security branches” in pharmacies would allow for verifying drug stocks to ensure their validity.
To conclude this SIMUN 2021, Joy Tabet added, “Over the past three days, our four committees have debated over 12 topics and made 7 resolutions. I believe we ended up with 16 resolutions where delegates debated, made amendments, modified them to pass them or to not pass them.”
To watch the closing remarks of SIMUN 2021 committee head chairs and secretary-general, click here.
Read the story about SIMUN 2020 on lePetitJournal.com.
To learn more about the High School curriculum, click here.