India Japan Joint Working Group to Meet Tomorrow for Strengthening Cooperation in the Information and Communication Technology Field

A Joint Working Group of India and Japan is to meet tomorrow to take forward issues relating to strengthening cooperation in the field of Information and Communication Technology. Discussions will be initiated by the Minister for Communication and Information Technology Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad while the Japanese will be lead by Shri Yasuo Sakamoto, Vice-Minister for Policy Coordination International Affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication (MIC) of Japan. In the area of Telecom, IT and Electronics, the two countries have complementary strengths. Whereas, Japan has the technology and is excellent in hardware side, India offers market and has great strengths in the area of software development. Together India and Japan can develop Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for the world market. Japan is a major manufacturing powerhouse, manufacturing about $1 trillion of goods, which constitutes about 20% of its $5 trillion GDP. On the other hand, India is a land of opportunities with a potential of providing 600 million broadband connections in next 5-6 years, which will entail an investment of tens of billions dollar. Considering these factors, India becomes a natural partner for Japan to execute joint projects for manufacturing of electronic and telecom goods and equipment here in India. The reforms agenda unleashed by the new government, including its Digital India programme, provides an opportunity for Japanese companies to invest in India, particularly in the field of ICT where 100% FDI is permitted, besides collaborating with Indian companies for manufacturing of ICT products. Realizing their complementary strengths, two countries will explore the possibility of having joint projects in the following areas during their meeting tomorrow, besides discussing other matters of mutual cooperation in the field of ICT. Green ICT ICT for disaster management Cyber and network security ICT applications for Social and Economic challenges leveraging National ID scheme being implemented in India. The Minister of Communication & IT Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad and Shri Yasuo Sakamoto Vice Minister of International Affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication (MIC) had met on the sidelines of ICT Ministerial meeting at Brunei on 09 September 2014 and discussed matters of mutual interest in the field of ICT and decided to hold a Joint Working Group in Delhi in December 2014. This joint Working Group meeting is part of this ongoing process of cooperation. Earlier during his visit to Japan from 30 August to 03 September 2014 the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi met the Prime Minister of Japan Mr Shinzo Abe and the two countries decided to cooperate with each other in different fields such as defence, strategic cooperation, healthcare, energy, roads, Railways, art culture, heritage among others. Indian side at tomorrows meeting will have representatives from Telecom Equipment Manufacturers Association, Cellular Operators Association of India among others. The Japanese delegation will have representatives from companies of that country. Shri Rakesh Garg, Secretary (Telecom), Shri A.K. Bhargava, Member (Technology) and other dignitaries, senior officers from DoT and MIC Japan will also participate in the discussions tomorrow.

India Japan Joint Working Group to Meet Tomorrow for Strengthening Cooperation in the Information and Communication Technology Field

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