In June, Aahan Bhojani, 17, received a letter informing him he had been appointed Secretary General of the UN. Well, not exactly the UN, but the Model United Nations (MUN). The Model United Nations has been mooted for students and simulates the actual running of the UN in every aspect. It has been established so that students can be exposed to international issues and be educated about civics, effective communication, globalisation and multilateral diplomacy.
For a 17-year-old, finding his feet in a world increasingly shaped by strategic negotiations, farsighted alliances and matters of diplomacy, presented a great opportunity to learn and display his own skills in these areas.
Bhojani worked his way from delegate to official at the MUN conferences held worldwide. He has been participating since last year. Apart from chairing the MUN chapter at his school, the Dubai International Academy (DIA), this year, Bhojani also attended the Global Young Leaders Conference held in Washington DC. He was surprised and delighted when out of the 400 international delegates, he was selected to chair the simulation conference.
"It is the most senior position and I was absolutely delighted to have been bestowed this honour," he says.
Then in June he received news that the Model United Nations Conference, Singapore (THIMUN) had chosen him as the secretary general of the proceedings to be held in the third week of November. Bhojani, a second year International Baccalaureate Diploma student at DIA, will not only chair the second-largest MUN conference in the world with nearly 2,000 student delegates from over 100 international schools, but is also the first student from this region to receive this honour. For the first time, THIMUN Singapore has selected a secretary general from outside South East Asia.
"I could not believe it. The selection criteria are very tough. The applicants for the post were bright achievers from around the world, colleagues who had co-chaired other MUN conferences with me," he recalls. "All of them had formidable records and they were all deserving. It was a tough call. It is a moment that I will always remember."
Bhojani is now preparing for the November conference, working hard at pre-conference preparations, liaising with members around the world and training all 34 chairs for the big event. He spends two hours each day after school going through the major papers that will be presented at the conference and preparing reports on each topic.
Bhojani was motivated to participate in MUN conferences after he saw and was moved by a short film that was screened at his school last year. He first represented his school as a delegate for the special political and decolonisation committee at MUNISH 2008, held at The Hague in the Netherlands, followed by THIMUN 2008, where he attended as the ambassador of Kenya in GA2. This was followed by his attendance at Harvard University MUN 2008 as a delegate for Argentina. Once he had represented MUN as a delegate, he started applying for chair positions and represented THIMUN Singapore 2008 as deputy chair of GA2, assistant president of the security council in WEMUNC 2009 (Beijing, China) and then once again at the THIMUN 2009, he went in as the assistant president of the Human Rights Sub Commission.
Finally at DIAMUN 2008, held at DIA, he chaired the conference as secretary general and this paved the way for promotion in November
He possesses excellent public speaking skills and has been the master of ceremonies at various functions at school and also works hard at studying current global issues.
"I was nervous when I first spoke at a MUN conference. But I realised that the delegates were not there to find fault with my public speaking, but to cooperate on serious topics such as child abuse and try to resolve issues through effective dialogue and decision-making.
"I look forward to chairing the THIMUN Singapore this November and hope to make my family, school and this region proud. Participating in the MUN has not only been a learning curve, but also a deeply humbling experience. I feel I have been given the opportunity to express the aspirations of millions of people around the world who cannot speak for themselves."
