PHILIPPINE AMBASSADOR PROMOTES COOPERATION WITH AL AKHAWAYN UNIVERSITY

AUI President Dr. Amine Bensaid and Ambassador Leslie J. Baja

24 October 2022 – As part of the Embassy’s thrust to improve bilateral relations between the Philippines and Morocco, PH Ambassador to Morocco Leslie J. Baja visited the Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane (AUI). He was received by AUI President Dr. Amine Bensaid, Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Christopher Taylor, and Director for Internationalization and Partnerships Dr. Brian Seilstad.

During the meeting, Ambassador Baja and AUI representatives discussed the possibility of forging a formal partnership between AUI and some universities in the Philippines to promote interfaith and intercultural dialogue, open doors for student exchange programs, and enhance the educational community’s familiarity with the Philippines as a partner of Morocco in Southeast Asia.

Ambassador Baja with the Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences Dr. Asmae Abbas, and graduate students from the International Studies and Diplomacy program.

The Ambassador also had the opportunity to meet AUI students who are taking their master’s degree in international studies and diplomacy where he candidly shared his experience as an Ambassador, the qualities of being a good diplomat, and how the profession has evolved over the years as new global issues such as climate change, migration, sustainable development, among others, have found their way in the conduct of bilateral, regional and multilateral affairs of states. Some students expressed their interest to apply for an internship at the Embassy which could be part of its cultural and public diplomacy agenda.

AUI is the only university in Morocco that is modeled after the administrative, pedagogical, and academic organization of a classical American liberal arts education system where English is the primary medium of instruction. It was inaugurated in 1995 by HM King Hassan II and Crown Prince Abdallah bin Abdel-Aziz of Saudi Arabia. END