General Assembly 2 –
MEDIMUN 2015 – 10th Annual Session.
By Stelios Fiakkas and Katie Kapodistria
Topic 1
Promoting the correct use of monetary funds in LEDCs as a
means of increasing spending on areas such as education and
health care and combating corruption
Introduction
Healthcare and educational demands in less economically developed countries
(LEDCS) are changing. Ensuring access to clean water and sanitation, battling
ongoing transmitted diseases and controlling the amount of preventable deaths still
dominate the healthcare agenda in many countries. In the meantime, the need for a
stable and effective education system from a young age appears to be highly
necessary. Primarily located in the continents of Africa and South America,
LEDCs are not setting aside sufficient funds to invest in their educational sectors,
in order to help the population climb out of poverty, nor in their health sectors,
which is leading to a higher mortality rate.
Aside from this, corruption continues to be an ongoing problem in these regions.
Since poor people have low access to education, and are therefore uninformed
about their rights, this leaves them more easily exploited and excluded.
Key Terms
Monetary funds: A reserve of money set aside for some purpose. (Usually a
government wanting to spend money on services and infrastructure within the
country)
Healthcare: The maintenance and improvement of physical and mental health,
especially through the provision of medical services.
Less Economically Developed Countries (LEDCs): Implies a low standard of
living, with a high death rate, large population count and extreme conditions of
poverty.
Corruption: The misuse of public power for a private gain. Those in charge will
typically abuse a decision-making process, in order to be benefited personally in
the end.
Infrastructure: The basic physical and organizational structures and facilities (e.g.
buildings, roads, and power supplies) needed for the operation of a society.
Literacy rate: Percentage or number of people who can read and write.
Mortality rate: Percentage or number of deaths in a specific area or period, or from
a particular cause.
The Abuja Declaration: A pledge taken in April 2001 by the African Union to
increase government spending on health to at least 15%.
General Overview
LEDCs spend significantly less money on education in comparison to more
developed parts of the world, and children in these regions very often must work in
order to help out their families financially, not enabling them to go to school and
receive a primary education. Good education presently seems impossible to come
by if you are poor, causing literacy rates to drop; it’s so expensive that it is only
available to those than can afford it. The poor are marginalized with substandard
government schools. In Africa, for example, schools lack basic facilities, and
universities may suffer from overcrowding, as well as facing the difficulties of
retaining staff that are attracted overseas by higher pay and better conditions. Due
to this, 40% of Africans over the age of 15, as well as 50% of women above the
age of 25, are illiterate. When regions of the world are compared in terms of long
run economic growth, Sub-Saharan Africa ranks at the bottom along with Latin
America, due to the fact that governments are not investing adequate monetary
funds towards widespread education, and so, less and less people in these regions
are able to be educated and escape poverty.
At the same time, LEDCs aren't spending a sufficient amount of their funds on
health care services for the population, causing the spread of diseases such as
malaria, tuberculosis, and above all, HIV/AIDS. Continued high rates of maternal
and child mortality and rising rates of injuries linked to violence, particularly in
urban areas, are weighing down a system that is already inadequate to the
challenges facing it. Healthcare delivery infrastructure is insufficient; skilled
healthcare workers and crucial medicines are in short supply; and poor
acquirement and distribution systems are leading to unequal access to treatment.
Public-sector funding for healthcare remains uneven across the African continent.
While 53 African countries signed the Abuja Declaration pledging to devote 15%
of their national budgets to health, most remain far from that target and, according
to some estimates, seven countries have actually cut their spending on health over
the past decade.
In the meantime, corruption in many developing countries stands in the way of
improving crucial sectors of the education and healthcare systems. Corruption has
been going on for centuries in the LEDCs, even during the slave trades when
traditional rulers would sell their own people for their own interest. At a national
level, people’s effective participation and representation in society can be
undermined by corruption, while at local levels, corruption can make day to day
lives more painful for all affected, causing extreme poverty and low standards of
living.
Major Countries Involved
Some Examples of LEDCs and Developing countries: Afghanistan, Angola,
Argentina, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Chad, Cuba, Eritrea, Gabon,
Haiti, Madagascar, Nigeria, Paraguay, Uganda, Sudan, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Sources
www.independent.co.uk
www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
http://www.janssenemea.com/sites/default/files/The%20Future%20of%20Healthcare%20in%20Africa
.pdf
http://europafrica.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/education-discussion-paper-jeg26th-march-2009.pdf
http://web.mit.edu/12.000/www/m2015/2015/ledc_medc_edcomparison.html
www.bbc.co.uk
http://www.oecdobserver.org/news/archivestory.php/aid/291/Fighting_corruption_i
n_the_developing_countries.html
Feel free to add any additional information you find, as long as it’s valid and
truthful. Any falsified information will be punished, so try to write original
resolutions of your own work to the best of your abilities.
Topic 2
Persuading the BRIC countries to impose stricter
environmental controls for their industrial activities.
Executive summary
The rapid rate at which the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China
and South Africa have in recent years been closing the gap with the developed
world has been breath- taking. The popular BRICS acronym referring to these
rising powers has in the last decade come to signify the major shifts underway
in global economic and political relations. Yet those who assume that the
patterns of growth observed in the last 20 years will continue un- abated should
bear in mind that the BRICS states face considerable obstacles to their individual
paths of development. These obstacles include the threat of political and social
instability arising from extreme social inequality and rampant corruption, as well
as problems caused by an inadequate infrastructure unable to keep apace of the
rapid economic growth seen in recent years. Further obstacles include massive
environmental problems and the weight of demographic pressures on labor
markets and education and social welfare systems.
Agenda 21
In 1992 at the UNCED after 5 years of deliberation and negotiation more than 178
nations signed Agenda 21 which has been described as “the sustainable
development bible”. Agenda 21 transformed the Brundtland report into a codified
UN document palatable to the majority of governments party to it. It is not,
however, a legally enforced international treaty but instead a non-binding
resolution and “Its successful implementation is first and foremost the
responsibility of Governments”. Agenda 21 is an international call to national
governments to implement measures that would ensure the security of
development for all.’
Pollution in BRICS
Environmental issues in Brazil include deforestation in the Amazon Basin,
illegal wildlife trade, illegal poaching, air and water pollution, land degradation
and water pollution caused by mining activities, wetland degradation and severe
oil spills, among others. As the home to approximately 13% of all known species,
Brazil has one of the most diverse collections of flora and fauna on the planet.
Impacts from agriculture and industrialization in the country threaten this
biodiversity.
As a developing or newly industrialized nation, Brazil is notable for taking a lead
in environmentally friendly initiatives. In the field of biofuels, Brazil is the
second-largest producer of ethanol in the world. It is also home to two sustainable
cities. Nevertheless, environmental issues remain a major concern in Brazil.
There are numerous environmental issues in Russia. Many of the issues
have been attributed to policies during the Soviet Union, a time when officials felt
that pollution control was an unnecessary hindrance to economic development and
industrialization. As a result, 40% of Russia's territory began demonstrating
symptoms of significant ecological stress by the 1990s, largely due to a diverse
number of environmental issues, including deforestation, energy irresponsibility,
pollution, and nuclear waste.
Inefficient energy usage and the use of fossil fuels is another environmental issue
that Russia faces. The Ministry of Fuels and Energy stated that upgrading energy
sector equipment could cut carbon emissions by 25%, and the Energy Research
Institute predicts that such measures could save up to $1 billion of fuel every year.
68% of Russia's energy is produced by polluting fossil fuels, and it is a large
producer of those fuels.
There are many environmental issues in India. Air pollution, water
pollution, garbage, and pollution of the natural environment are all challenges for
India. The situation was worse between 1947 through 1995. According to data
collection and environment assessment studies of World Bank experts, between
1995 through 2010, India has made one of the fastest progress in the world, in
addressing its environmental issues and improving its environmental quality. Still,
India has a long way to go to reach environmental quality similar to those enjoyed
in developed economies. Pollution remains a major challenge and opportunity for
India.
Environmental issues are one of the primary causes of disease, health issues and
long term livelihood impact for India.
Pollution is one aspect of the broader topic of environmental issues in China.
Various forms of pollution have increased as China has industrialized, which has
caused widespread environmental and health problems.
 According to the Chinese Ministry of Health, industrial pollution has made
cancer China’s leading cause of death.
 Every year, ambient air pollution alone killed hundreds of thousands of
citizens.
 500 million people in China are without safe and clean drinking water.
 Only 1% of the country’s 560 million city dwellers breathe air considered
safe by the European Union, because all of its major cities are constantly
covered in a "toxic gray shroud". Before and during the 2008 Summer
Olympics, Beijing was "frantically searching for a magic formula, a
meteorological deus ex machina, to clear its skies for the 2008 Olympics."
 Lead poisoning or other types of local pollution continue to kill many
Chinese children.
 A large section of the ocean is without marine life because of massive algal
blooms caused by the high nutrients in the water.
 The pollution has spread internationally: sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides
fall as acid rain on Seoul, South Korea, and Tokyo; and according to the
Journal of Geophysical Research, the pollution even reaches Los Angeles in
the USA.
Some environmental issues that affect South Africa are: water pollution, air
pollution, land degradation, solid waste pollution, and deforestation. The
environmental damage affects not only the population’s health, but also the
species that live in the area, while also contributing to the world-wide issue of
climate change.
This corrosion severity map of South Africa schematically summarizes 20 years of
atmospheric exposure testing. The coastal regions extending some 4-5 km inland
tend to be most corrosive due to the effect of wind swept chlorides. High humidity
levels tend to exacerbate the detrimental effects of such
chlorides.
Key Terms:
BRICS countries: The BRIC [Brazil, Russia, India and China] idea was first
conceived in 2001 by Goldman Sachs as part of an economic modeling exercise to
forecast global economic trends over the next half century; the acronym BRIC was
first used in 2001 by Goldman Sachs in their Global Economics Paper No. 66,
“The World Needs Better Economic BRICs”.
The BRICS Business Council: The BRICS Business Council is composed of 25
prominent entrepreneurs from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa,
representing various industries and sectors in the BRICS nations.
Environmental health: is the branch of public health that is concerned with all
aspects of the natural and built environment that may affect human health.
Environmental protection: is a practice of protecting the natural environment on
individual, organizational or governmental levels, for the benefit of both the
natural environment and humans.
Monetary funds: A reserve of money set aside for some purpose. (Usually a
government wanting to spend money on services and infrastructure within the
country)
Overview
The BRICS are both the fastest growing and largest emerging market economies.
They account for almost three billion people, or just under half of the total
population of the world. In recent times, the BRIC have also contributed to the
majority of world GDP growth.
According to various economists projections, it is only a matter of time before
China becomes the biggest economy in the world - sometime between 2030 and
2050 seems the consensus. In fact, Goldman Sachs believe that by 2050 these will
be the most important economies, relegating the US to fifth place.
By 2020, all of the BRIC should be in the top 10 largest economies of the world.
Hence it is important to encourage this rapidly expanding growth on sustainable
methods of production and prevent further pollution of the environment.
Sources
http://thebricspost.com/
http://topics.bloomberg.com/sustainable-development/
http://www.sgi-network.org/brics/
http://www.globalsherpa.org/bric-countries-brics
http://www.brics5.co.za/about-brics/
www.bbc.co.uk
www.cnn.com
http://www.brics-info.org/
www.un.org/en/
Topic 3
Measures to prevent the decline of the elephant population
in Africa
Introduction
Elephants are vital to the web of life in Africa. As a keystone species, they help
balance all the other species in their ecosystem, opening up forest land to create
firebreaks and grasslands, digging to create water access for other animals, and
leaving nutrients in their wake. Sometimes called the "megagardeners of the
forest," elephants are essential to the dispersal of seeds that maintain tree diversity.
The African elephant once ranged across most of the African continent from
the Mediterranean coast to the southern tip. It is thought there may have been
as many as 3-5 million African elephants in the 1930s and 1940s.
However, in the wake of intensive hunting for trophies and tusks, elephant
numbers fell dramatically throughout the continent from the 1950s. In the
1980s, for example, an estimated 100,000 elephants were being killed per
year and up to 80% of herds were lost in some regions. In Kenya, the
population plummeted by 85% between 1973 and 1989.
Key Terms
Poaching: The illegal hunting, killing or capturing of wild animals without the
landowner's permission
Ivory: A hard creamy-white substance composing the main part of the tusks of an
elephant, often used to make ornaments and other trinkets.
General Overview
The African elephant population had been on the decrease for the past century
or so, and with the alarming rate at which poaching and hunting is occurring, these
creatures are close to soon being extinct. In Central Africa, Congo, the Democratic
Republic of Congo, and Gabon hold the majority of the sub-region’s known
elephants, but at the same time, monitoring of elephant populations, apart from at a
few well-monitored sites, is sporadic and inconsistent. The low precision of most
estimates makes it difficult to detect any immediate repercussion on elephant
numbers in the short-term but this does not mean there are no changes.
The species remains threatened by illegal hunting for meat and ivory, habitat
loss and human-elephant conflict. Most range states do not have adequate capacity
to protect and manage their herds. If conservation action is not forthcoming,
elephants may become locally extinct in some parts of Africa within 50 years, and
this huge scale of losses of African elephants could reduce genetic diversity to the
point where healthy and robust populations become dangerously weakened. In
countries where wildlife management authorities are chronically under-funded,
poaching is a chronic and dangerously significant problem. Thriving but
unmonitored domestic ivory markets continue in a number of states, some of
which have few elephants of their own remaining. These markets fuel the
illegal international trade. Ultimately, the illegal killing of elephants for ivory is
driven and sustained by demand from consumers who are willing to pay for illegal
ivory, as measured by the excessive household consumption of ivory in China.
While it remains to be seen whether the situation is stabilizing, it is clear that
international cooperation on law enforcement and public awareness is vital.
Improved monitoring is also essential to allow informed decision-making
regarding the killing of so many elephant herds.
Major Countries and Organizations Involved
IFAW (International Fund for Animal Welfare): Founded in 1969, the
International Fund for Animal Welfare saves individual animals, animal
populations and habitats all over the world. Advocating against the trade chain and
trafficking of ivory, IFAW has pioneered ivory destruction events in the USA, UK,
France and Belgium. Countries, ranging from elephant range states to ivory
consumer nations, publicly destroy their confiscated ivory stockpiles through
burning and crushing.
Sources
http://www.ifaw.org/united-states/our-work/elephants/ending-ivory-trade
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/08/140818-elephants-africapoaching-cites-census/
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-29929423
http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/elephants/african_elephant
s/