(from left)  Dr.Yaowalak Apichatvullop, Dean of KKU's Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, H.E. Ana Maria Ramirez, Ambassador of Argentina to Thailand, Ms. Fuangket Tonghuchi and Ms. Elisa G. Diaz, staff members of KKU’s Spanish Department.

H.E. Ana Maria Ramirez, Ambassador of Argentina to Thailand, visited the Mekong Institute last February 20, 2012, to be informed on strategies concerning connectivity in the Mekong.

“The presentation was very useful, because we didn’t know that there was such an institute that dealt with these issues,” the ambassador expressed, pointing out the uniqueness and strategic position of MI, being GMS-owned, and having a concentration on Rural Development, Trade and Investment, and Human Migration.

She added, “I will report back to Buenos Aires about this, because we can learn from MI as Argentina also has the same interconnectivity issues, regarding Rural Development, and especially Migration.”

Argentina, as she explained, has many bilateral agreements with neighboring countries. Migration, when it comes to people from neighboring countries, is not considered illegal. “We do not use the word illegal for neighbors”, she said as she went on about how their country encourages and facilitates migrants and their documentation in order for them to access education and health benefits.

She said that an institute like MI could be a great source of information and insight due to its regional connectivity experience. Argentina, she informed, is also bound by a river, connecting many other countries to them through trade and migration, setting its similarity to the Greater Mekong Subregion.

 
Dr. Suchat Katima, MI Director, welcomes H.E. Ana Maria Ramirez to the Mekong Institute.