In October of 2018, Hope for Education and Leadership in Afghanistan (HELA) partnered with the United States Embassy in Afghanistan to develop a grant called “Foster Model UN Trainings and Competitions Throughout Universities in Afghanistan”, which aims to establish Model UN teams throughout the country, hold provincial Model UN conferences, and organize a final conference for successful teams from four provinces of Afghanistan (Kabul, Herat, Mazar and Nangarhar).
This grant hit the ground floor running, with thirteen universities and over 500 students becoming involved from the onset. In collaboration with Online Model UN (OMUN), MUN Impact, and the Taipei American School Model United Nations (TASMUN), the HELA Team has provided participating students with training over the span of four months through a standardized curriculum and experienced MUNers throughout the world.
Two months ago, HELA organized Model UN conferences in all four of the aforementioned provinces with over 120 students participating in each. With the exception of Kabul, conference organizers chose 34 students from every province to compete in a championship conference, where they debated geopolitical issues related to peace and strong institutions of governance.
Currently, HELA is considering organizing a flagship conference for previously involved provinces, to be held on the 28th to 30th of August in Kabul. The organization plans to invite government officials and embassies to the conference’s opening ceremony. With their conference theme set to Sustainable Development Goal 16, peace, justice and strong institutions, HELA has partnered with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s Education for Justice (E4J) initiative. Both organizations have worked towards selecting international issues for the flagship conference that are relevant to SDG 16.
The last year has been a long ride for all those involved, so HELA would like to thank its partners for their contributions and support throughout their initiatives!