UN MODEL CONFAB HELD

About 200 children converged at the Accra International Conference Centre for the 2008 Junior High School Model United Nations (UN) Conference to mark the 63rd UN Day celebrations.

The children, representing member countries of the United Nations, discussed what each country was doing to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) before 2015.

They also outlined some of the challenges each member country was facing and how the goals could be achieved in the individual countries. The eight MDGs range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education by the year 2015.

The children, whose ages ranged between nine and 19 years, stressed the need for children to be included in achieving the MDGs.

At the end of the programme, the Overall Best Student would be sponsored by Lufthansa Airways, while the Best Male and Female Speech Writers and the Best Presenter would also be sponsored to the Model UN Conference for Children in New York next year.

The Model UN, according to Life-Link Friendship Schools, organisers of the conference, aims at building understanding of global challenges among young people of different backgrounds, culture and nationality.

Throwing more light on the programme, the Executive Director of Life-Link Friendship Schools, Mr Ernest Gyimah Danquah, explained that since its insertion, Life-Link Ghana had organised 10 Model un conference for children in the country

According to him, the organisation had also assisted some Ghanaian children to participate in several international UN model conferences at the UN Headquarters and the United State Department this year, where Ghana won nine awards, including the Secretary-General’s Award for best delegation.