Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC)

The Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) is a regional body of Latin American and Caribbean nations that is dedicated to furthering integration of regional nations into cooperation and reducing the influence of the United States on Latin American politics. At CMUNNY XV, delegates will be tasked with addressing and attempting to resolve two pressing issues facing the region today. The first topic examines the pressing situation of the Venezuelan refugee crisis. In 2018, an estimated 5,000 Venezuelans were fleeing the country every day. In a country of around 38 million people, around 6 million have fled Venezuela to neighboring nations such as Colombia, where Venezuelans now constitute almost 3% of the population, Ecuador, Brazil, and even as far as the US-Mexico border by foot and train as well as Europe and beyond in the past few years. This issue is increasingly involving every nation in CELAC. The majority of those leaving Venezuela are professionals in the fields but find themselves in poverty and working low-wage jobs in their destinations. CELAC will discuss the role of individual nations in this expanding situation that now involves more countries than ever imagined.

The second topic of debate will examine the rise of transnational drug trafficking throughout the region. In Latin America, the drug trade is worth between $18 billion and $39 billion just in Colombia and Mexico alone. Many nations in these positions are unable to implement offensive actions to curb trafficking as they face some of the world's highest poverty rates. With a significant presence of drug cartels and an increase in violence and violent crimes, murders in Latin America in reaction to increased legislative restrictions on drug trafficking have risen sharply in the past few years. Many Latin American and Caribbean nations serve not only as countries of origin for illicit drugs but more significantly as transit nations for drugs bound for North American and European markets. With both topics, delegates will be tasked with finding solutions to these issues in the context of the regional body, using the resources of member nations to address these issues with a strong and complex approach, on both a short- and long-term basis.

This is a General Assembly style committee.