By Lilia G11

The ECOSOC debate intensified as delegates shifted their debate to the colonial resource extraction and its impact on a country’s development. Historically, colonial powers extracted vast amounts of natural resources from their colonies, more often than not, without regard for local communities or environmental sustainability. This exploitation left long-lasting economic and ecological scars, particularly in the global south, which continues to struggle with the consequences of these historical injustices.
The first resolution, led by the People’s Republic of China, focused on sustainable resource management and ecosystem restoration, with a key emphasis on addressing the historical impacts of colonial resource extraction. The resolution passed with an overwhelming majority vote, receiving strong backing from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, which highlighted the importance of restoring national sovereignty over resources.
On the other hand, a resolution advocating the historical injustices of colonial resource extraction through reparations and sustainable development measures, failed to pass due to significant divisions between delegates. South Africa–being at the forefront of advocating for reparations–emphasized the ongoing legacy of colonial exploitation in Africa, highlighting how centuries of resource extraction had resulted in both environmental damage and economic inequality–which the delegation argued could only be addressed through financial reparations. Ukraine echoed similar sentiments, drawing attention to the environmental toll of colonial practices in former Soviet territories.
The western powers–such as the United Kingdom and the United States–expressed their reservations about the reparation clauses, raising concerns about the practicality and fairness of financial reparations, which they argued would be difficult to implement. The United States delegate emphasized that a more effective solution would be to focus on technology transfer, green growth and international economic partnerships rather than reparations. Moreover, the UK delegate warned that reparations could worsen economic tensions and disparity between LIC and HIC.
The debate over reparations became the most controversial issue of the session. Several amendments were proposed, but none gained enough support, and the resolutions were ultimately rejected. A tied vote on one amendment reflected the deep division of the issue. Despite broad agreement on the need for ecosystem restoration and sustainable development, the question of how to compensate nations affected by colonial exploitation remained unresolved.
Underscoring the complexities of addressing colonial legacies in the modern world and the challenge of balancing moral accountability, financial practicality and international cooperation in the pursuit of global justice.