The Bureau of Students' Tutorial, Guidance/Counseling Services and Co-curricular Activities (STAGS), University of Sindh convened a 3-day conference under the theme of Model United Nations (MUN). The opening ceremony of the conference was held at Shaikh Ayaz Auditorium, Faculty of Arts. Professor Dr Muhammad Siddique Kalhoro, Vice-Chancellor University of Sindh was the Chief Guest on this occasion. First and foremost, an introduction of MUN was presented.
As per the given project profile, the MUN Project is principally motivated and guided by the philosophy that in the upcoming decades, youth cadre will be the highest segment of the world human population; hence, it would be only appropriate for youth undertake the most significant responsibility of knowing, understanding, debating and eventually resolving the issues that not only confront the world today but also pose it a great threat.
The operational mechanism of MUN activities is based on extra-curricular activities in which students play the typical role of assumed delegates of various countries, representing their respective nations in an assumed General Assembly, Security Council and other such forums of the United Nations; and also simulate various United Nations' Committees. Such activities take place at MUN conferences that are organized in rotation by almost all leading educational institutions all over the world including Pakistan; where the first such moot was launched by Lahore University of Management Sciences in 2001.
The VC University of Sindh, addressing to audience comprising hundreds of students came from various parts of country, observed that he strongly believed that by playing the assigned roles of statesmen and states-women, politicians, diplomats, delegates, ambassadors and special envoys, students will gain-first-hand experience of taking positions on global issues, arguing logically and decently, expressing difference of opinion without compromising the self respect of the opponent, listening empathetically, analysing issues objectively, developing perspectives, forming points of view and taking timely and wise decision.
This way, he maintained students will learn to develop sense of responsibility, respect for fair-play, build confidence, enhance art of communication, promote power of persuasion, improve social behaviour, adopt the pattern of academic proceedings and develop insights on international affairs. All such activities and skills, put together, he emphasised will groom students to be effective future leaders and decision makers with increased abilities to resolve issues under high pressure situations. He further stated that the given experience will also sharpen students' crisis management; disaster-management and conflict-resolution skills and they will eventually be able to contribute for more effectively in making the world a much better and happier place for all to live in.