110 high school students take part in GU-Q’s virtual Fall MUN at QF

MORE than 100 students from 12 high schools in Qatar participated in the first virtual Model United Nations (MUN) conference at QF partner Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) where over three days, young delegates took on the role of UN ambassadors to address global issues under the theme of ‘Diversity and Integration in the World of Conflict’.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s Fall MUN was online to ensure that Qatar’s high school students were given the opportunity to develop a host of critical skills through the program and are better prepared to take on the challenge of GU-main Q’s international MUN taking place in the spring.

Jibin Koshy, Educational Enrichment Manager at GUQ, explained the rationale for hosting this additional specialized MUN for local students: “As an institution in Qatar seeking to improve the experience of the national education sector, we wanted to provide additional training to give local students a competitive edge. And as a result, more local students are winning awards at our international MUN, which means that they are also gaining more skills that they can take back to the classroom with them and in whatever else they do.”

Schools have been allowed to send up to 2 delegations of 6 students each for a total of 12 students per school. Working in committees, student delegations then discussed and deliberated on real-life global issues, including economic instability in Venezuela, corporate responsibility, nuclear proliferation, global disability rights, civil rights in Kashmir, the Rohingya crisis, and political stability in post-Arab Spring countries.

Recognising the massive effort and mobilisation of GU-Q student volunteers, including the MUN Student Board, Student Organisers, Student Chairs, Press and Staff members, Jibin said: “We are particularly proud of our team of 30 Georgetown students who worked tirelessly to organize this conference despite the challenges of the pandemic, and we applaud their commitment to our flagship. This conference is a testament to the undying spirit of both Georgetown and high school students in Qatar.”