RESOLUTION- GUIDELINES &
SAMPLE
Prepared by:
Ritchie Philip Thomas (Chairperson)
Keerthana Prem (Chairperson)
The United Nations definition of Resolution is:
United Nations resolutions are formal expressions of the opinion or will of
United Nations organs.
In Layman terms,
A resolution is a document that contains all the issues that the committee
wants to solve and the proposed solutions to that issue.
(Considered as a Draft resolution(DR) unless and until it has been successfully voted
upon to pass as a resolution by a majority)
Written during unmod caucus sessions where the delegates lobby with other
country delegates to form blocs to discuss and come up with a DR Document.
Why are resolutions made in the UN?
1. Formalize international agreement - turns debate into official stance
2. Provide direction for action - Tell countries & UN Bodies what is expected,
how to handle an issue
3. To establish international norms - Global standards
4. Enable coordination via funding, cooperation and shared frameworks
Reality Check - UN vs MUN resolutions
ASPECT UNITED NATIONS MODEL UNITED
NATIONS
Purpose To address real-world To simulate
international issues international
and guide global diplomacy and assess
action delegate skills
Nature of Document Official international Academic simulation
policy document of a policy document
Authority Varies by organ Not legally binding
(binding in United
Nations Security
Council; mostly
non-binding in United
Nations General
Assembly)
Drafting Body Diplomats, legal Student delegates
experts, and representing countries
government
representatives
Negotiation Process Extensive, strategic, Limited timeframe;
and often conducted open and structured
over long periods negotiation
Enforcement May include sanctions, No enforcement
Mechanism monitoring bodies, or mechanism
interventions
How To Write a Resolution (in Times New Roman 12 Font)
A resolution document consists of
● Heading
● Preambulatory Clauses
● Operative Clauses
1. Heading
● Committee name
● Sponsors (Authors of resolution) - At least 3
● Signatories (wish to see it debated, may not
necessarily agree) - At least 5
● Topic
2. Preambulatory Clauses
States all the issues the committee wishes to solve
Includes
● Past UN resolutions, treaties, or conventions
related to the topic
● Past regional, non-governmental, or national
efforts in resolving this topic
● References to the UN Charter or other
international frameworks and laws
● Statements made by the Secretary-General or
a relevant UN body or agency
● General background info formation or facts
about the topic, its significance, and its impact.
Every clause should start with
an underlined/italicized preambulatory phrase and should end with
a comma
For example, my country wants to address the issue of how HIV/AIDS has
spread rapidly in sub-Saharan Africa. I pick a pre-ambulatory phrase from
above — I’ll use “Alarmed by” — and then I combine it to say:
Alarmed by the 17% increase in HIV/AIDS contraction among sub-Saharan
African countries in the past five years,
3. Operative Clauses
Proposes solutions pertaining to the agenda & for
preambulatory clauses which contains issues
● Numbered (1, 2, 3…)
● Begins with an underlined/italicized Operative phrase.
● Subclauses are allowed marked in lowercase letters
● End with a semicolon (;)
● The final clause ends with a period (.)
For example, my first solution is to distribute
low-cost medicines for HIV/AIDS to sub-Saharan
African countries. I pick an operative phrase from
above — I’ll use “Calls upon” — and then I combine
it and number it to say:
1. Calls upon the developed countries and major
pharmaceutical countries to provide low-cost,
generic medicines for HIV/AIDS to sub-Saharan
African countries;
SAMPLE