Download Model United Nations Club: Country

Model United Nations Club: Country Research
You will need to learn about your country so you can address the issues
raised at the conference as a real UN delegate from that country. To represent
your country accurately, conduct research to find the answers to the following
questions:
I. History
1. When was your country established as a sovereign state? How?
2. What are some major events in your country’s history? Why are they important?
3. When did your country become a member of the UN? What were the surrounding historical
circumstances?
II. Geography
1. How physically large is your country? How does it rank worldwide?
2. What are the major geographic features of your nation? (also include topography, natural
resources, and climate)
3. Where is your country located? Which countries share a border with your country?
4. What domestic environmental problems/concerns does your country have?
5. How has its geography impacted its economic activities and political relationships?
III. Political structure and function
1. What sort of government does your country have? Be specific in terms of structure. Be more
general in terms of function.
2. What types of ideologies (political, religious or other) influence your country’s government?
IV. Domestic Issues and demographics
1. What is the population of your country? How does it rank worldwide?
2. What is the gender and age breakdown of your society?
3. What is the ethnic composition of your country? Are there any problems related to
ethnicity/culture?
4. Where are the major population centers in your country?
5. What is the literacy rate in your country? What is the crime rate?
6. Where does your country rank in the human development index?
7. Has your government been cited in any human rights violation incidents?
8. What are some current pressing social problems?
V. Foreign Policy
1. Which domestic issues might influence your country’s foreign policy?
2. Which ethnicities, religions and languages can be found in your country?
3. Which countries are considered allies of your country?
4. Which countries might be considered enemies/rivals of your country?
5. Does your country belong to any intergovernmental organizations outside the UN system such as
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) or the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting
Countries (OPEC) or the Arab League?
VI. Economics
1. What are the characteristics of your country’s economy? (Primary exports? Imports? Degree of
government regulation of business? Labor laws?)
2. What is the poverty rate in your country?
(Economics continued)
3. What is your country’s gross domestic product (GDP)? How does it rank compared to other
countries in the world?
4. Does your country belong to any regional organizations such as the European Union (EU), the
African Union (AU) or the Organization of American States (OAS)?
5. Does your country belong to any trade organizations or regional blocs such as the North American
Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) or the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD)?
Tips for Researching Your Country
Use http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/ to help you research your country. Cyber school bus is a
UN based web site that focuses on providing education to secondary school students and usually
serves as a good basic introduction to a country.
Look at the CIA World Factbook for a general overview on your country, and for figures and
statistics as well. The World Factbook is produced by the United States Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA). Would your country’s government agree with the way your country is characterized in the
World Factbook?
Check out reputable news and media sources for recent developments in your country.
Read the US State Department report on your country. Call the US State Department desk officer
for your country to find out more about conditions there.
When using search engines, narrow your search results by putting .edu, .org, and/or .gov as a
search domain filter.
Wikipedia is best used for acquiring other websites that are more credible and substantiated.
Look up your country’s permanent mission to the UN. During more in depth research on specific
committee topics, you can also call the mission directly to ask questions or request a position
statement on an issue.
Find your country’s voting records and read speeches on the United Nations Bibliographic
Information System website. Again, this is probably best for more specific committee topics.