The Australia-ASEAN Muslim Exchange Program (AAMEP) was a flagship program of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trades’ Australia-ASEAN Council which ran from 2019-2023. Inspired by its sister program, the Australia-Indonesia Muslim Exchange Program, the AAMEP connected emerging Muslim leaders who continue to actively contribute to their communities in Australia and countries across the ASEAN region.
AAMEP alumni are highly engaged and well connected to the AIMEP alumni community, bringing the combined total of alumni across both programs to more than 400 community leaders and change makers from across Australia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam and Indonesia.
Past AAMEP delegates have included community organisers, educators, scholars, activists, religious leaders, lawyers, artists, politicians, entrepreneurs, and others, representing diverse aspects of the region’s many Muslim communities.
Through the program, delegates had the opportunity to experience firsthand the rich diversity of multicultural and Muslim communities in Australia and across Southeast Asia. They engaged in meaningful dialogue, and intellectual, intercultural and interreligious exchange with key individuals and organisations, forming relationships between Muslim communities in Australia and across the region which remain until today.
Find out more about our AAMEP alumni by visiting the Alumni Directory:
The AAMEP is a unique oportunity for connection, dialogue, and growth between like-minded emerging Muslim community leaders and activists across Australia and the ASEAN region.
Connect and dialogue directly with high profile and inspiring leaders and changemakers, and build a community of like-minded people across the region.
The program features a diverse and rich range of opportunities for in-depth, meaningful dialogue on issues that are important to you and your community.
Join a varied and vibrant alumni network that spans diverse fields. Engage in new collaborations and build lasting professional and personal networks and connections.
Grow your leadership skills as you connect and learn from emerging and established leaders and changemakers from Australia and Southeast Asia.
Established in 2002, the Australia-Indonesia Institute’s Muslim Exchange Program (MEP) establishes and nurtures the ongoing contact between emerging leaders of Muslim communities in both Australia and Indonesia.
Australian AIMEP delegates reflect on their time in Indonesia – the progressive nature of Indonesian society, the active engagement of women in all spheres of life, and the importance of people-to-people connections.
‘Creating peace and understanding, while finding unity in our differences is no longer difficult when people open their minds to accept each other and stand up tall for tolerance.’
Al Hijrah TV Malaysia
2019 AAMEP Delegates at Thailand
Delegate hopes for AAMEP 2019
2019 AAMEP Delegates at Malaysia
AAMEP delegates - TV Al Hijrah interview
2019 Australia-ASEAN Muslim Exchange Program - Testimonial