Committee Background Guide

Topic Description

The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) will be introduced for the first-time at HMUN Dubai 2027. This committee's debates center on the future of cross-border trade finance amid dollar dependence and the challenge of navigating industrial competition for smaller economies. Most trade transactions are denominated in U.S. dollars, and this has been the norm for decades. Recently, countries have faced sanctions, and the West has leveraged its currency dominance as a tool of foreign policy. Delegates will be asked to develop solutions to address this growing dependence and the unbalanced access to the financial infrastructure it has created in the global trade system.

Next, delegates will engage with the realities faced by smaller economies competing in a global market increasingly shaped by industrial policy and supply chain shifts. For instance, large economies have invested significantly in strategic sectors such as semiconductors, green energy, and artificial intelligence at a scale that small economies cannot match. At the same time, they face trade policy barriers that make it harder to expand their economies. These countries find themselves unable to enter new markets and integrate into globalization, simply because of the precedents set by the institutions that established this system.

As the global trade system comes under greater pressure, delegates will have to navigate trade-offs in representing countries with different stakes in the global trade order. They will effectively establish the institutions that decide who gets to contribute, who gets to benefit, and who gets left behind in the future of the global economy.

Jimmy Merino - Director

Jimmy Merino is a junior studying Economics and Government, but originally from Boston, Massachusetts. Previously, he has served as the USG of Finance for HMUN Canada and China and directed at HMUN Boston. You'll also find him competing on the Harvard Intercollegiate Model UN team!

Outside of MUN, you can find Jimmy running, playing volleyball, or taking pictures of cool spots with his digital camera. He is excited to see the delegate engage their ideas and learn from one another throughout the conference.