Coordination of International Exchange and Training Programs: Opportunities and Limitations

The U.S. Government has sought over the past 30 years to supplement intergovernmental diplomacy through programs involving exchange activities of private citizens. On April 1, 1978, the International Communication Agency (ICA) assumed the functions of coordinating the international information, educational, cultural, and exchange programs and serving as a governmental focal point for private U.S. international exchange programs. Efforts over the past 2 decades to expand interagency data sharing among federal exchange and training programs proved to be limited and short lived. Also, efforts to coordinate the programs were ineffective. Coordination has limitations that should be recognized in terms of cost-effectiveness, and more realistic goals are needed.