In the coming years more and more countries joined the network and AIESEC became global in a very short period by being present on all the continents.

The number of students and organizations involved in the exchange program grew rapidly and constantly, reaching 2467 exchanges by the end of 1960 and 4232 by the end of 1970.

Seminars were first introduced as part of trainees' reception experiences, in a proposal from AIESEC in Germany in 1961. It was well received by other countries, and a general set of seminar topics to be addressed was proposed and accepted. They were mainly economic in nature, and for the first time AIESEC was addressing specific issues in its activities-stated clearly in a non-political way.

At the 1974 International Congress in Bordeaux, an important motion was passed: the minimum length of an Exchange traineeship had to be 6 weeks. This measure improved the quality of our Exchanges.

In 1976 an International Theme Programme was established that focused all international, regional, and local seminars on specific topics. This idea continued and grew through various stages.

After this the focus of the organization was on addressing global themes besides the traditional Exchange Program. Themes like International Trade, Management Education, Sustainable development, Entrepreneurship and Corporate Responsibility were discussed at local, national and global seminars.

In the late 90's the discussion about the relevance of the organization brought the Exchange Program on the main agenda and more and more effort was put in ensuring growth in this area.

Information systems were developed to make the process faster and easier. Insight I was launched in 1997 and Insight II in 2001. As the focus of the organization was the eXchange program again, the number of exchanges started to grow.

Looking for more relevance, AIESEC is the international platform for young people to discover and develop their potential .

"The United Nations has long recognised that the imagination, ideals and energies of young men and women are vital for the continuing development of the societies in which they live. And since its inception in 1948, AIESEC has contributed to this development by serving as an agent of positive change through education and cultural exchange. In an era of globalisation, your programmes have helped young people around the world to develop a broader understanding of cultural, socio-economic and business management issues."

Kofi Annan , United Nations

AIESEC in MENA

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) initiative was launched in 2005, with the vision of unifying countries in the region around common issues in order to increase the impact AIESEC is creating. One year later, this vision became reality with the creation of the MENA growth network within the AIESEC global structure, including introducing positions for coordination and support of the regional activities in the form of a MENA board. In 2006, AIESEC went on a major expansion drive in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. MENA now consists of Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Tunisia, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

AIESEC in the United Arab Emirates

AIESEC in the UAE was established in 2001 as the First AIESEC initiative in the Gulf. Being the first GCC country to join the Global AIESEC Network, AIESEC in the UAE has been accepted as 85th member country as part of AIESEC. AIESEC in the UAE realized its first Exchange in year 2003.