240 STUDENTS attend Model UN conference(22/3/09)

THE Lincoln Community School (LCS) has held a three day annual Model United Nations (UN) Conference in Accra.
The conference was held at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training §center (KAIPTC) under the theme “Globalisation of Human Rights through education and develoment”.
It brought together over 240 international students who had practical experience of the operations of the United Nation.
The students were from the Lincoln Community School, Tema International School (TIS) and American International School, as well as first time participant, Roman Ridge School, all of whom formed the Ghanaian delegation.
Students from American International Schools from regions in Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, Lebanon and Germany formed the rest of the international delegation.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Director of the LCS Model United Nations Conference, Mr John Scwerk said the conference would enable the students to interact, discuss, debate and research into global conflicts and other issues.
He said the conference sought to help them to have an understanding of how foreign policies were made at the United Nations (UN) and how issues were deliberated on to arrive at appropriate solutions he stated.
“This conference will provide the basis for learning and defending human right issues and also for generations to come, in the hope that the students would be abreast with judicial and political issues,” he stated.
Mr Scwerk said the conference was to enable the students to learn the act of public speaking, solving problems on their own.
The Director said the conference started five years ago with only five participating schools, with the sole objective of informing students about proceedings at the UN, with students acting as delegates representing an assigned country.
He said the students researched into policies, discussed current issues which reflected those discussed at the UN and held debates to reach a resolution.
Mr Scwerk said the conference would feature a Security Council and three committees namely; Environmental Policy, Economic and Social Council and Human Rights Council.
The participants would be made to tour some tourist sites in the country as part of the programme.