Secretariat and Non-Governmental Organizations Overview
Program Area Roles
A comprehensive Role Guide is available for each of the following delegate roles and officer positions on the KUNA Resources page
Delegate Roles
- Non-Governmental Organization Representative (NGO) | Up to 3 experienced 8th graders (MS) and 10th-12th graders (HS) chosen by school
Supporting Officers
- Under-Secretary-Generals (USG) | 5 students selected from SO application
- Under-Secretary-Generals of Legal Affairs (USGLA) | 2 students selected from SO application
- Registrar | 1 students appointed by the Deputy Secretary General
- Chief of Staff | 1 students appointed by the Secretary General
Presiding Officers
Delegations must intent and register for the conference of which their Presiding Officer is elected/appointed.
- Secretary-General | Elected from Presiding Officer Candidates
- Deputy Secretary-General | Elected from Secretariat and NGO Juniors
The Secretariat is one of 6 major organs of the United Nations.
At KUNA, the Secretariat comprises of 6 departments' offices. These 6 departments are selected by the Deputy Secretary General after reviewing the resolutions to determine which would be the most useful to the Secretary General.
The options are:
- Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- Department of Global Communications
- Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs
- Department of Peace Operations
- Department of Operational Support
- Department of Safety and Security
- Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
- Office of Counter Terrorism
- Office for Disarmament Affairs
- Office of Internal Oversight Services
As well as the Office of Legal Affairs (two students) that will work very closely with the International Court of Justice Program to determine the legality of resolutions proposed at KUNA: very similar to the role of Attorney General role at KYA.
Under the Secretariat, are Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). These are the equivalent to lobbyists at KYA. They are international non-profits and advocacy organizations, like UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders, and Amnesty International.
Each NGO will select resolutions to advocate for or against on behalf of their organization.
Delegations can register up to 3 NGOs at KUNA. Students must have at least one year of KUNA experience in order to participate.
If you are at all interested in the Secretariat and NGO program, please carefully read the entirety of this page. It has important information regarding due dates, pre-conference work, and other pertinent information.
Program Description
The Secretariat and NGO program focuses on two areas: Advocacy and Access.
Participants in this program advocate on behalf of their NGO. They sign up to advocate for or against resolutions. Based upon how well the NGO advocates, they may be granted access to the Secretary General by advancing through meetings with the Under Secretaries General (USG) and then the Deputy Secretary General (DSG). NGOs are boots on the ground advocates hoping to build a coalition of ambassadors to support specific resolutions.
NGOs and USGs are considered experts in their field. They receive special reserved time during debate to provide testimony. NGOs provide testimony during Ranking Committees, and USGs provide expert testimony during General Assembly debates. The overarching goal of this program is for students to learn how to network with other students, advocate for issues they are passionate about, and realize their voice is an agent for influencing others.
What does that look like at KUNA?
The NGOs advocate for or against resolutions on behalf of their NGO. USGs are preassigned 10-15 resolutions that fall under their department to provide historical context on how the UN has traditionally responded. USGLAs are assigned 20-25 resolutions to sift through, and determine their legality.
NGOs will advocate on behalf of their chosen NGO by providing supporting or opposing testimony during ranking committees, building a coalition of supporters, and gaining access to the Secretary General by advancing through meetings with the Secretariat.
USGs run the meetings with NGOs, determining which one advances to the meeting with the Secretary General. As members of the Secretariat they are able to advocate in the places where NGOs do not have access such as General Assembly debates and guaranteed meetings with the DSG and Secretary General.
At a glance...
- NGOs advocate on behalf of their organization to further a cause they believe in.
- USGs maintain the integrity of the UN by providing precedence and political context to how the UN would actually respond.
- USGLAs hold resolution sponsors accountable! They determine the quality of a resolution, this determination is used by the Secretary General and for award eligibility.
For more information, please review the Roles and Responsibilities and the Secretariat Schedule.
Students participating in this program can expect to:
- Complete and turn in required pre-conference work
- Network with students and build relationships with peers
- Challenge their everyday viewpoints
- Learn time management and communication skills
- Gain a better understanding of how the United Nations functions
- Have a fast paced, but fun and rewarding three day experience
For conference specific dates, deadlines, and other information: please click below!
HS 1 HS 2 MS
Assembly Agenda
Day 1 | Program Area Meeting
All Secretariat and NGO ambassadors and officers will participate in this mandatory meeting on Day 1 to receive program materials, review agenda/logistics, and answer any questions.
Day 1 | World Expo
NGO's will table at World Expo to teach conference attendees about their organization.
Day 2 | Ranking Summit Testimonies by NGOs
NGOs present 1-min. testimony on Resolutions they are supporting/opposing. Testimony can be presented either immediately before or after pro/con debate. This way, if you have Resolutions presenting simultaneously, you can finish testimony on one and then head to the other.
Day 2 | Talking Points in Ranking Summit Debate
NGOs are not allowed to speak during Voting Summits, but rather, they are encouraged to distribute Talking Points. Talking points are brief points about the pros or cons of the resolutions that ambassadors can reference during their speech. Because NGO’s are not elected Ambassadors from countries, they do NOT have speaking privileges during Voting Summit debate, only during Ranking Summit debate.
Day 2 | Meetings with Secretariat and Under Secretaries
If a Resolution passes during Voting Summits, both NGOs on the Resolution meet with their assigned Under-Secretary-General. This meeting will be a short well-researched, informed conversational discussion about the resolution. Come prepared to share data, statistics, stories, etc. The USG will choose one NGO to advance and meet with the Deputy Secretary-General.
Day 2 | NGOs (2) present to the Secretary General
After completing all NGO meetings, the Secretariat will select 2 NGOs to present their position on one of their Resolutions to the Secretary-General.
Day 2 | Final Secretariat and NGO meeting
On the final night, we will meet together to elect the next year's Deputy Secretary General.