By Alexia Hernandez
To advocate for global food security, Silliman University (SU) foreign affairs major Abyss Cheryle Wee joined the Asia Youth International Model United Nations (AYIMUN) delegation last Nov. 1 to 4 at Bangkok, Thailand.
Themed “Global Coalition: Tackling Child Food Poverty,” Wee and her fellow delegates joined talks hosted during the UN International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) council sessions.
The discussions included UNICEF’s support in aiding countries like the Philippines in developing policies and services to address food insecurity.
According to Wee, the Philippines can benefit from international collaboration to solve food security challenges.
“By forming a coalition that unites the Philippine government, [non-governmental organizations], and the private sector, we can build a framework to address food insecurity from all angles,” Wee added.
During the conference, she also offered hands-on experience in international governance discussions to promote diplomacy and policy understanding among youth.
“As a student from the School of Public Affairs and Governance, joining AYIMUN was my way to gain practical experience in committee sessions to complement my classroom learning,” Wee shared.
She also said that “representing different countries and studying their policy positions” helped to build bridges and change perceptions.
Moreover, her experience highlighted the need for climate-resilient food storage infrastructure, which could protect against disruptions caused by natural disasters.
She also saw the potential of microloan programs for small farmers, which she said could “increase production capacity” by enabling farmers to access better resources.
These microloan programs are small-scale lending initiatives providing “credit access” to underserved communities.
Moreover, Wee hopes to apply her newfound knowledge to broaden her understanding of international governance.
“Having to join AYIMUN, it gave me an opportunity to learn how the United Nations and its committees work, [engage] with a variety of political issues and most importantly get to know other people from different countries around the world,” Wee said.
AYIMUN is an annual conference that gathers young leaders from across the globe to simulate the operations of the United Nations.
Wee’s also attended the International Model UN conference in Hanoi, Vietnam last Oct. 4 to 6, an educational conference where students and young professionals from around the world assume the roles of diplomats representing different countries.
