More than 400 Students from all Over the World Participate in First Annual NYMUNLAC 2018

The Dominican Association of the United Nations (ANU-RD), jointly with the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (FUNGLODE), its sister organization the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD), and the Mexican GlobalMuners civil association, formally opened the first annual New York Model United Nations Conference for Latin American and the Caribbean with the participation of more than 300 young students from the Dominican Republic and some 100 peers
from other Latin American nations. Participants also included 35 professors from participating schools, some 60 representatives from the event’s Secretariat, and several observers.

Seated at the head table were H.E. Ambassador Juan Avila, representing the Dominican Republic Mission before the United Nations; Giancarlo Summa, Director of the United Nations Information Center for Mexico, Cuba and the Dominican Republic; Yamile Eusebio Paulino, Funglode/GFDD
Representative; Pilar Sandoval, Executive Director of GlobalMuners; Enmanuel Santana, Executive Director of Global Faculty; Elyzabeth Arzeno, Representative of the APEC-ANURD scholarship program; Ignacio Soriano, General Manager of ANU-RD, and José Rojas, Secretary General of NYMUNLAC 2018.

In his introductory remarks Mr. Giancarlo Summa provided the participating students with relevant information on the U.N. At the same time, Ms. Pilar Sandoval highlighted the achievements reached
by GlobalMuners along with ANU-RD. Engineer Edwin Jackson, in representation of the ANU-RD Executive Director Ignacio Soriano, also discussed the success and innovative actions the program will achieve during the Conference. Mr. Rojas provided the participating delegates with encouraging and motivational remarks.

During the opening ceremony, the Delegation Heads participated in the Third General Assembly Commission on Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Issues
(AG3).

They highlighted the importance of World Autism Awareness Day. Representatives from Kenya, the Republic of Korea, France, Guatemala and Iran also spoke during the ceremony.

The Program’s Agenda was approved by the General Committee, presided by Jhomairy Peralta, president of the Dominican Association of U.N. Volunteers (V-ANURD) and José Rojas, Secretary General of NYMUNLAC2018, opened the session with an Inaugural First
Gavel.

After concluding the opening ceremony, participants officially opened the First Annual NYMUNLAC 2018 thereby continuing with the successful trajectory of the Dominican Model Conference of the United Nations (NYDRMUN), a program that has contributed to the participation of more than 60,000 students from the Dominican Republic and 25 other nations.

On April 2-3, the students participated in 10 commissions and discussed issues normally debated by
the 193 representatives of the U.N. Member States. At the same time, professors, heads of educational institutions, parents and participants in general attended a seminar programmed for attending professors on quality education and global issues.

Mr. Paul Goris, the IT & Education Coordinator at Funglode presented the latest tendencies in IT and how they could support the achievement of SDG4, as it relates to quality education for all.  Also, Mr. Manuel
Medrano, International Exchange Programs Assistant discussed with the teachers the importance of international exchange programs through internships, and referred to the GFDD’s InteRDom program, which for more than 10 years has been promoting the exchange of students between the Dominican Republic and the world.

The closing ceremony was held at U.N. headquarters in New York City on Wednesday, April 4, during the afternoon, in the same venue used annually by the
Heads of State and Government during the opening of the General Assembly in September.

During this activity, the students voted for the best projects presented during the sessions. Special guest, Mexican Senator. Sylvia Leticia Martínez Elizondo, congratulated the organizers for such an impressive event and discussed the interest shown by participants to pass a bill in Mexico so that the country’s educational system includes the UN Model as a tool for the
students to learn.

Also in the closing program were the presentations of awards issued to the best delegations that participated in each commission as well as to the best educational institutions.

During this part of the program the ANU-RD and GlobalMuners presented a special award to Ms. Yamile Eusebio Paulino, Funglode/GFDD representative, for her unconditional contributions in the promotion of young leaders and her invaluable contributions to make
the First Annual New York Model United Nations Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean a true success.

About the NYMUNLAC
The NYMUNLAC 2018 is the only Conference of its kind that gives young Latin American students an opportunity to participate in debates involving important global issues in Spanish. It also allows them to present their conclusions from the actual seats of the 193 official Representatives of the U.N. Member States. The
event takes place at U.N. headquarters in NYC.

The Conference is held between April 1-5, 2018, in the Hotel Grand Hyatt Convention Center and at the U.N. General Assembly Hall. Representatives from private, public schools and universities from the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Argentina, Chile and other countries from the region. All represent various U.N. Member States and participated in 10 Commissions from the U.N. and other international organizations.