Sidetrack During Research - Overseas Secondments

Whilst researching for my scholarship, I came across the following book that is proving to be quite interesting. Although not directly related to my research, it does raise some interesting points.

The book:

Author: Thompson, Anthony.
Title: MEILLEUR, Mobility of Employment, InternationaL, for Librarians in EURope : professional staff exchanges and secondments between libraries in Western Europe : a survey of opportunities and difficulties / Anthony Thompson.
Published: London : Library Association, 1977.
Description: 68 p. ; 30 cm.
ISBN: 0853656606

I was very much interested in the difficulties encountered through overseas secondment opportunities. Obstacles listed include:

• Qualifications: lack of equivalence and the problems of status in the receiving library;
• Insufficient knowledge of foreign languages;
• Insufficient knowledge of the foreign country and its library system;
• Foreign exchange and different standards of living;
• Cost of travel;
• Accommodation: including home for family, and schools for children;
• Social and health insurance;
• Schools of librarianship: harmonisation of training;
• Library associations: no agencies for fitting persons to jobs;
• Governments: discrimination in the public service, based on nationality;
• Libraries: not special vacancies for libraries, no funds to pay foreign employees, no prescribed length for exchanges;
• Lack of imagination and of appreciation of the value of working abroad;
• Advantage not taken of existing cultural agreements between countries and of twinning between towns.

I'm wondering if anyone out there who has participated in an overseas exchanges/secondment would like to comment on any of these obstacles. Are they still the same? Have things improved? What are the advantages of going abroad?