The Stevens Initiative has announced 18 grants for virtual exchange programs to ensure students can develop cross-cultural skills during the pandemic.

Access to education is a foremost priority for the ESU, and is an objective that governments across the continent must focus on while making funding for universities sustainable, the group has said in its 2019 policy document.

US virtual exchange facilitator, the Stevens Initiative, has granted an additional round of funding to nonprofit Soliya, which it says will connect students in the US, Middle East, and North Africa.

Not every student is able to go abroad - there are some significant barriers to physical student mobility.