ECOFIN

International Debt and Financial Reform

The Committee: ECOFIN (The Economic and Financial Committee) is the Second Committee of the United Nations General Assembly and largely focuses on economic growth, development, and stability for all nations. With the aim of promoting peace and security, ECOFIN was created, focusing on economic policy, taxation, and regulation of financial services. In a time like today, with instability and tension circulating the globe, it is imperative that we brainstorm solutions to difficult topics. In this committee be prepared to address macroeconomic policy questions, developmental finance/sustainability, globalization, the elimination of poverty, among much more. We hope that countries regardless of their resources and economic standing can collaborate in an attempt to resolve the many socio economic issues that plague our world in today’s age. In order to fully take advantage of this General Assembly, focus all research on possible collaborative solutions as opposed to just descriptions of the issues’ histories. Solutions may contain ways to alleviate hunger, close the gender-wage gap, combat climate change, promote urbanization, and more. At the end of the day’s conference, we hope to see collaborative working papers and eventually the passing of one resolution.

The Topic: International Debt and Urbanization: The increase in interest rates by central banks and subsequent rise of net interest payments heavily skews public budgets, leading to inefficiency in nations around the world. Also, high rates of external debt possessed by developing countries decrease the investments they can finance. These factors negatively impact citizens as they are burdened with increased tax in order to stabilize the country’s financial state. Food Insecurity and Climate Struggles: Food insecurity is defined as having consistent access to an appropriate quantity of nutritious and affordable food. With 1 in 7 people facing food insecurity, it is an extremely prevalent issue. Further, droughts, rising sea levels, and land degradation also have long term effects on food security as a result of anthropogenic climate change. It is also predicted that between 2016 and 2030, 120 million people could be driven into extreme poverty as a result of global warming, Gender Equality: There is a great divide in gender equality when comparing developed and non-developing countries. In developed countries, a major effort is being made to close the wage gap between men and women in the workforce. In rural areas, girls are often disadvantaged educationally. This must be repaired in order to provide safe and equitable opportunities for all. Concluding: These three main topics are what we will be debating on in committee. Please read our entire background guide to prepare!