A Message to the AIMS Community

Dear All,

It’s been a while since we wrote to you as the Secretariat of AIMS, but we felt like it was the right moment with a new AIMS website to send a message of support.

The world today is facing a test unlike many we have encountered so far. The COVID-19 pandemic still poses a significant challenge to individual health, public health systems, economies and societies at large. We, at SEAMEO RIHED, are based in Bangkok and are continuing our work as the situation permits. While we do not have the ability to support those on the front line, we are in a position to help those close to us – and we are not only talking about the students of the AIMS Programme, but rather all the people that make AIMS what is it is. You, our community.

With that said, SEAMEO RIHED wants to do its part to help in these difficult times, even in the smallest of measures. As the Secretariat of AIMS, SEAMEO RIHED feels deeply concerned about the well-being of our members and students and want to better understand the situations that you are all coping with. A survey has been circulated among participating AIMS universities to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the operation of the AIMS Programme. Your voices and responses are valuable inputs for AIMS as a whole to overcome this unprecedented crisis and we look forward to taking these inputs into consideration for the future of the Programme and mobility for the region.

For SEAMEO RIHED, we are in the position of being a small organization that occupies an international position within the field of higher education. We hope for nothing more than to be able to play a small part in the health and safety for all stakeholders of the AIMS Programme. Because our greatest accomplishment, and the achievement for which we are most proud, is not the annual meetings, nor the number of students who go on exchange, but the community, the family and trust that have helped AIMS grow over the last 10 years.

Please keep informed and take all necessary precautions to stay safe and healthy as we go through this difficult time together.

Yours,

The Secretariat of the AIMS Programme