UN Children’s Fund

Dear Delegates,

Kefhira Pintos

Welcome to the Harvard National Model United Nations’ 2012 United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Committee! My name is Kefhira Pintos and I am proud to serve as your director in our humanitarian journey.

Hailing from Miami, FL, I was born to Argentinian parents and spent a part of my childhood living in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  As part of the Harvard Class of 2014, I now find myself far away from Florida’s beaches yet look forward to studying Social Studies with a focus on the psychology of international relations and a Spanish language citation. When I’m not discussing world politics and humanitarian efforts, I find myself taking photos for the Harvard Yearbook or laying out the pages of the Harvard International Review.

Congratulations on coming this far and I hope you are as excited as I am to dive into two central issues in UNICEF’s agenda. The first one, children in the context of political instability, is directly related to the recent conflicts in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya and the problems that arise as children are witness and victims of these events. The second topic deals with malnutrition, touching upon both undernutrition and overnutrition as dangers to our youth. Both topics are relevant to our everyday lives and leave room for both interpretation and heated debate, but I have no doubt that through cooperation with your fellow delegates, you will succeed in addressing these pressing humanitarian issues.

As our conference approaches, I encourage you to visit the UNICEF website and familiarize yourself with the study guide. Please contact me through email if you have any questions or concerns. Can’t wait to meet you in February!

Sincerely,

Kefhira Pintos
Director, UN Children’s Fund
Harvard National Model United Nations 2012

Topic Area A: Children’s Rights in the Context of Political Instability

The past months have seen political instability that is record-worthy. Youth groups in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, and most recently Libya have risen to speak and fight for their rights against their respective dictatorships. The world has watched the rebellions unravel in front of their TV screens and internet articles. These rebellions threaten the political stabilities of surrounding countries and the world’s economic balance but above all will shape history.

With the importance of these events outlined, where do the children of these nations come in? Who is thinking of them in all of this political turmoil? Often too young to understand what is happening, children in these nations are experiencing death and disaster at first hand. We must ask what we can do towards their psychological health. To what extent is their right to education in danger by such occurrences? How can UNICEF ensure a stable youth, able minded and healthy to lead these nations into the next chapters of their history?

By creating historical parallels, we will be able to investigate what UNICEF has done in the past in the presence of political instability, what it is doing now and what, as a committee, you and your fellow delegates will propose.

Topic Area B: Malnutrition

Those who are well fed are well equipped to go through their days, to learn and become productive. Good nutrition not only benefits individual families but leads to a more prosperous community and world. The term malnutrition not only refers to undernutrition but also to overnutrition. A person is considered malnourished if their eating habits, their diets, do not provide adequate calories and protein for growth or consume too much. Malnutrition is the killer of one third of all children in developing countries and affects 143 million children under the age of five, stunting intellect, productivity and perpetuating poverty.

The effects of perpetual malnutrition are fatal. UNICEF has scaled up its nutrition interventions with programs in the area of Infant and Young Child Feeding, Micronutrients, Nutrition Security and Nutrition and HIV/AIDs but these aren’t reaching millions. As our successors, what programs can be established to make sure every child is nourished?

By taking into consideration statistics and past efforts, you and your fellow delegates will discuss the relevance and effects of both undernutrition and overnutrition and consequently devise propositions on how to handle these.