Model United Nations is a simulation of the UN General Assembly and other multilateral bodies. In Model UN, students step into the shoes of ambassadors from the various, UN member, states to debate current issues on the organization’s agenda. While playing their roles as ambassadors, student ‘delegates’ make speeches, draft resolutions, negotiate with allies and adversaries, resolve conflicts, and pilot the, Model UN, conference’s rules of procedure - in the interest of mobilizing international cooperation to resolve problems that affect countries all over the globe.
Dhaka University Model United Nation Association (DUMUNA) is a student based non-political, social and voluntary organization that works for intellectual and creative development of Dhaka University students utilizing the concept of UN assemblies. DUMUNA started working on the concept, Model United Nations in January of 2011. It is dedicated to promote the students’, volunteering, creative and rational qualities. It is staffed by an active and energetic group of students to promote the concept of Model UN and its practices in Bangladesh. It imparts training, workshops and different brainstorming activities for its members to participate at different, Model UN, conferences around the world. It also maintains bilateral relations amongst universities beyond national borders to keep the students updated with the ideas from around the world.
For the first time, DUMUNA, arranged a four day long National Model UN conference titled ‘Dhaka University National Model United Nations, conference 2012’ (DUNMUN) at Dhaka University from December 23-26, 2012. Aiming to promote the Model U N concept among the students of the country, the theme of the conference was ‘Toward global partnership for sustainability’.
The opening ceremony of the DUNMUN 2012 took place on December 23 at the Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban, University of Dhaka. Honorable Vice Chancellor, University of Dhaka, Professor Dr. AAMS Arefin Siddique attended the grand event as the chief guest while Professor Dr. Dalem Chandra Barman, Honorable Vice Chancellor, ASA University Bangladesh, Professor Dr. Delwar Hossain, Dept. of International Relations, University of Dhaka and moderator for DUMUNA, Sheikh Mohd. Erfan Uddin, Founding President, DUMUNA and Mohammad Mamun Mia, Secretary General, DUNMUN 2012 and President of DUMUNA were also present as the special guests.
Around 200 public/ private universities & colleges participated in this conference. This year, there were six committees in DUNMUN 2012 and one of these committees was the, UN Special Committee, for Bangladesh and that committee held procedures in Bangla which is a unique initiative from the DUNMUN family to make Bangla, the 4th largest spoken language of the world as the 7th official language of the United Nations. The event kicked off on December 26.