Welcome to United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
Dear Delegates,
It is my pleasure to welcome you to UNECLAC! I am expecting this committee to be very interactive and self-motivating and am hoping you will all enjoy your time being part of it. I am looking forward to seeing how you will participate in the debates and hone your ability to convey an opinion while working harmoniously with others to reach a consensus.
Now let me introduce myself. My name is Sarah Darwiche and I will be your chair for this committee. I am a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences majoring in International Relations and minoring in European studies and Hispanic studies. I was once in your shoes and started my MUN experience in high school. In fact, being part of this synergetic environment influenced my decision in pursuing my major and I hope that you will also benefit as I did from this experience. Besides my passion for MUN and international affairs, I am involved in another group at Penn. I am the Vice President of a Latin dance troupe called Onda Latina and spend a significant amount of my time at Penn in dance practices. Another fact about me is that I am from Lebanon. Being an international student at Penn is extremely rewarding because I got to learn about other cultures and have made friends from all over the world. With that said, please feel free to contact our USG - Allie Kronthal - with any questions you have!
I am looking forward to meeting you all in January! Good luck preparing for the committee.
All the best,
Sarah Darwiche
Chair, United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
Ivy League Model United Nations Conference XXVIII
Topic Summaries
Topic A: The Impact of Political Violence on Latin American Development
Though wars between countries in the region have been rare and short lived, Latin American history has endured countless manifestations of political violence including civil wars, guerrilla campaigns, and suppression by autocratic regimes, coup d’états and terrorism. Additionally, the region has been plagued by startling inequality in terms of opportunity and wealth as well as somewhat halting economic development.
Violent confrontations threaten economic stability and productivity in very obvious ways. Attacks destroy lives, property and assets while unreliable preventative measures create an environment of uncertainty that is conducive neither to investment nor productivity. Additionally, internecine conflict underscores and exacerbates the existing fragility of some Latin American governments, turning a climate of uncertainty into one of outright chaos. In such hazardous conditions, growth ceases to be a viable objective; instead governments struggle to maintain the limited services and infrastructure they have managed to cobble together. Most importantly, this upheaval engenders a crippling nihilism in the populace that remains long after the worst of the violence has passed.
Studies have shown that the periods of greatest turmoil are those that also present the lowest rates of GDP growth and the highest levels of inequality. It has also been observed that those countries that manage the greatest levels of development are correspondingly less vulnerable to political violence. Addressing the ramifications of this linkage has become a major agenda item for the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. This committee will take on the responsibility of discussing how best to deal with political violence from an institutional and developmental perspective, including also the prevention of and insurance against conflict and terrorism.
Topic B: Managing Infrastructure Development and Human Settlements in Latin America
Latin America’s recent economic advances are nothing short of astonishing. The region’s powerhouses, Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina especially have seen phenomenal growth in the past decades. Unfortunately, this newfound prosperity has not completely revealed itself in the domain of infrastructure management. Public investment in infrastructure as a percentage of GDP is a fraction of what it was in the 1980’s and is slightly over half of what it was in the late 1990s. Financing challenges are most apparent in the transportation industry. Public transportation is still far from universally accessible and lags far behind other developing countries such as those in Asia. Road safety is also a major concern as poorly constructed thoroughfares and reckless driving have earned Latin America the world’s worst road safety record. With over 130,000 fatalities and 6 million seriously injured people every year, car crashes kill more people than crime and violence. ECLAC has made it a top priority to correct deficiencies and bring transportation infrastructure up to par as cities expand and especially as Brazil prepares to host both the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics. As the urban population rapidly grows, land use and human settlement policy issues have been brought to the forefront. ECLAC has made a concerted effort to create and maintain a framework for meeting UN standards for developing eco-efficient and sustainable urban infrastructure.