TOPIC A: Obesity epidemic in Latin America

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• Within the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), member countries in the Americas have faced a severe increase in the obesity epidemic. These past few years, obesity and overweight are on the rise throughout Latin America and the Caribbean and are particularly prevalent among women and children. There are main factors contributing to the rise of obesity and an individual’s change in dietary patterns.  Some are known as increased urbanization, and integration of the region into international markets, which have reduced the consumption of traditional preparations and increased consumption of ultra-processed products. Through a comprehensive analysis of past health epidemics and pandemic responses, delegates will propose resolutions that drive reform, establish effective oversight tools, promote education, and address systemic public health challenges.

TOPIC B: Lack of healthcare in rural areas

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• Across various areas of Latin America, lack of or limited access to health care has been a critical issue upon the basis of human well-being. This limited or lack of health care is prominent in rural areas, specially in Indigenous communities,  where there is limited government intervention, transportation, communication, low availability of health care professionals, lack of epidemiological data on indigenous villages; and a lack of information on local indigenous cultures. Furthermore, the rate of healthcare across indigenous communities can also be affected by gender equality as women tend to have a higher rate of morbidity due to their triple burden of reproductive, domestic, and productive labor. Which consequently place them at higher health complications than men, thus requiring a higher level of accessibility to healthcare. Nevertheless, delegates must analyze the complications this critical dilemma leads to and, thus, be able to propose resolutions, among others, that will resolve this.