Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
30 Annual Conference
“Initium Novum”
th
6th Legal, Water and Food Security in Developing Countries
Greetings fellow delegates, I am Kevin Yang, a senior at Mission Viejo High
School. As the President of Key Club, the Vice-President of the California
Scholarship Federation, and the Vice-President of the National Honors Society, I am
heavily involved in community service. I also enjoy the math and sciences as
President of Science Olympiad and our school’s Math Club. Model United Nations is
meaningful to me because it has highlighted for me the many issues that our world
faces. In this committee, we will be discussing an issue that I find particularly
interesting – how to protect water and food security in developing countries. I am
excited to hear the advantages and the drawbacks of solutions that will be posed in
this committee regarding this issue.
I.
Background to Water and Food Security in Developing Countries
With world population now exceeding 7 billion and projected to increase by a
billion around every two decades, hunger and water scarcity is becoming more and
more prevalent, particularly in developing countries.
Though water scarcity affects all countries in some way, the rural communities of
developing nations are most affected by a lack of water because they lack the proper
infrastructure to transport water and may not be in close proximity to water sources.
According to research, 700 million people worldwide face water scarcity and do not
have the proper infrastructure to obtain water. Further, this number is only increasing
as climate change alters the natural distribution of fresh water around the water.
According to current trends, models have shown that over 1.8 billion people could be
affected by absolute water scarcity. Pollution also affects the ability of countries to
conserve freshwater. In addition to being a requirement, of life water is important
because it is vital to the success of agriculture. Hence, this inability to maintain water
security leads to difficulties food security as well.
The right of all to sufficient levels of food suggested by the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights is becoming increasingly threatened by the malnourishment and
starvation that is affecting large proportions of the populations in developing
countries. This problem of hunger that already strikes 925 million people, with the
majority living in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, will only become worse as time
continues and the effects of limited water availability become increasingly
pronounced. Due to water shortages and an uneven distribution of water, certain rural
communities in developing countries are having great difficulty in growing food. It
has been found that the ability of a community to access water is directly correlated
with the poverty and food security of this community. Water scarcity has also been
found to lead to gender inequality. Additionally, water scarcity can also lead to
desertification, which would cause the permanent destruction of important arable
land. Hence, water security directly affects food security and both must be protected
in order to protect the welfare of communities in developing countries.
Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
30 Annual Conference
“Initium Novum”
th
II.
UN Involvement
On 28 July 2010, the UN General Assembly declared the right for all to clean
drinking water. As previously mentioned, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
also affirmed the right of all for equal access to food. The United Nations has become
increasingly concerned with the inability to maintain these two rights of food and
water access as hunger and water scarcity rapidly spread.
Hence, in order to combat this, the Food and Agricultural Organization of the
United Nations (FAO) has published a report on the State of Land and Water
Resources (SOLAW) every 3 to 5 years in order to advocate for this cause. Moreover,
the International Conference on Freshwater held in Bohn Germany from December
3rd to December 7th suggested to 118 countries and 47 intergovernmental agencies
Recommendations for Action (RFA). The Earth Summit 2002 in Johannesburg also
helped to describe the issue of decreasing water availability, urged the
implementation of National Sustainable Development Strategies, and helped define
the roles, responsibilities, and methods of action of different agencies and
governments. The United Nations has also supported the research of various
international agencies on the issue of limited water and food availability to produce
explanations for this trend and ideas for change.
III.
Possible Solutions
Though I strongly feel that the delegates of their respective countries should
develop new and creative solutions that align with their countries policies, here are
some solutions that have been previously proposed.
With around 80% of all available freshwater going to irrigation compounded upon
the need for water for the ever-increasing global population, water conservation
practices in agriculture must be employed. Farmers in developing countries must be
made aware of the increasing water demand and limited water supply because they
hold the solution to this problem.
In order to reduce the amount of freshwater used in agriculture. Technologies
regarding higher yields of crops with the use of less water must be developed and
researched.
More developed countries should invest in the water systems of developing
countries to increase water productivity. International research efforts should also be
made to allow for more efficient methods of water transport and production.
In order to promote international awareness, World Water Days and other ideas
that are similar in nature and identical in cause to World Water Days should be
further promoted. Education about individual water efficiency should also be put in
place in both developing and developed countries.
An effective solution will encompass many of the aforementioned methods of
attaining both water security and food security. It is the extent and the specifics of
each method that will help develop the proper response to solve the problems of water
scarcity, malnutrition, and starvation in developing countries.
Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
30 Annual Conference
“Initium Novum”
th
IV.
Bloc Positions
Western Block- The Western Bloc, with its more developed countries, will likely help to
provide the financial support for international research on improving the efficiency of
water use.
Middle Eastern Block- The Middle Eastern Bloc is also more developed than other parts
of the world and hence, will play more of a role in funding and investing in the water and
food security of underdeveloped countries.
African Bloc- This bloc is severely affected by a lack of water and food security. Hence,
this bloc will support international efforts in research and awareness, but must also act on
the local level to alleviate the issues of water and food scarcity.
Latin American Bloc- Similar to African bloc, the Latin American also is still developing
and will seek the financial support of more developed countries in addition to acting
locally to increase water and food security.
Asian Bloc- Though there are many Asian Bloc countries that are highly developed, this
bloc also has the largest number of people suffering from hunger. For this reason, policies
and actions will differ according to the water and food availability of the respective
country.
V.
Guiding Questions
1) To what extent is water available in your country?
2) To what extent does the populace of your country suffer from hunger?
3) If you represent a developing country, what incentives does your country have to
offer developed countries to financially support the growth of food and water
security in your country?
4) If you represent a developed country, why would it be beneficial to your country
to support a developing country in attaining water and food security?
5) What solutions has your country posed regarding to increasing water and food
security? How can this be applied on an international level?
VI.
Bibliography
"Bonn Freshwater Conference." The Water Page. Water Policy International, n.d. Web.
03 Nov. 2012. <http://www.africanwater.org/bonn.htm>.
"Managing Systems at Risk." The State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for
Food and Agriculture. United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, n.d.
Web. 03 Nov. 2012. <http://www.fao.org/nr/solaw/en/>.
"The Urgency of Water Security." Global Water Partnership, n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.gwp.org/The-Challenge/The-Urgency-of-Water-Security/>.
"Water and Food Security." UN Water. United Nations, n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/food_security.shtml>.
"Water and Food Security." Water and Food Security. United Nations Food and
Agriculture Organization, n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2012.
<ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/010/ai560e/ai560e00.pdf>.