Viện Nghiên cứu Nam Á, Tây Á và Châu Phi

For each person, home is a place of protection and love. For us, there is also a second home, which is the Institute of African and Middle East Studies (IAMES), where we can work, gather, unite, share and help each other to achieve common goals. Established in late 2004, IAMES has traveled nearly 20 years on the path of research, cultivating knowledge, accumulating and disseminating information, knowledge and understanding of a vibrant area of brilliant cultural colors, diverse paths and levels of development. It is an honor for me to have accompanied IAMES for 16 years on that journey of nearly 20 years. 20 years is not a lot for an organization, but it is enough time for us to recognize and contemplate our-self, colleagues, lives and love.

Thank you for creating the opportunity for me to return to my second home. I am really happy and touched, because you - the generations behind us - have steadily moved forward, creating great changes for IAMES from initial simple research questions such as "What is Africa?", "What is the Middle East?", IAMES has now had hundreds of articles published in scientific journals, international conferences and dozens journals and books - are the results of long-term research by IAMES’s staff. Now surely IAMES can answer more difficult questions, such as “What is the importance and role of Africa and the Middle East in shaping and solving problems of the world's common destiny now and in the future?”.

We wish IAMES to continue to make affirmative contributions to the development of our country's social sciences. Wishing all of us health, happiness and success. Hopefully the Institute of Africa and Middle East Studies will always be a second home for each and every one of us.